Dataset Information

Transcriptome Analysis of Core Dinoflagellates Reveals a Universal Bias towards "GC" Rich Codons.

ABSTRACT: Although dinoflagellates are a potential source of pharmaceuticals and natural products, the mechanisms for regulating and producing these compounds are largely unknown because of extensive post-transcriptional control of gene expression. One well-documented mechanism for controlling gene expression during translation is codon bias, whereby specific codons slow or even terminate protein synthesis. Approximately 10,000 annotatable genes from fifteen "core" dinoflagellate transcriptomes along a range of overall guanine and cytosine (GC) content were used for codonW analysis to determine the relative synonymous codon usage (RSCU) and the GC content at each codon position. GC bias in the analyzed dataset and at the third codon position varied from 51% and 54% to 66% and 88%, respectively. Codons poor in GC were observed to be universally absent, but bias was most pronounced for codons ending in uracil followed by adenine (UA). GC bias at the third codon position was able to explain low abundance codons as well as the low effective number of codons. Thus, we propose that a bias towards codons rich in GC bases is a universal feature of core dinoflagellates, possibly relating to their unique chromosome structure, and not likely a major mechanism for controlling gene expression.

SUBMITTER: Williams E

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5450531 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Transcriptome Analysis of Core Dinoflagellates Reveals a Universal Bias towards "GC" Rich Codons.

Williams Ernest E Place Allen A Bachvaroff Tsvetan T

Marine drugs 20170427 5

Although dinoflagellates are a potential source of pharmaceuticals and natural products, the mechanisms for regulating and producing these compounds are largely unknown because of extensive post-transcriptional control of gene expression. One well-documented mechanism for controlling gene expression during translation is codon bias, whereby specific codons slow or even terminate protein synthesis. Approximately 10,000 annotatable genes from fifteen "core" dinoflagellate transcriptomes along a ra ...[more]

PMID: 28448468

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Project description:BackgroundDinoflagellates are eukaryotes with unusual cell biology and appear to rely on translational rather than transcriptional control of gene expression. The eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4E (eIF4E) plays an important role in regulating gene expression because eIF4E binding to the mRNA cap is a control point for translation. eIF4E is part of an extended, eukaryote-specific family with different members having specific functions, based on studies of model organisms. Dinoflagellate eIF4E diversity could provide a mechanism for dinoflagellates to regulate gene expression in a post-transcriptional manner. Accordingly, eIF4E family members from eleven core dinoflagellate transcriptomes were surveyed to determine the diversity and phylogeny of the eIF4E family in dinoflagellates and related lineages including apicomplexans, ciliates and heterokonts.ResultsThe survey uncovered eight to fifteen (on average eleven) different eIF4E family members in each core dinoflagellate species. The eIF4E family members from heterokonts and dinoflagellates segregated into three clades, suggesting at least three eIF4E cognates were present in their common ancestor. However, these three clades are distinct from the three previously described eIF4E classes, reflecting diverse approaches to a central eukaryotic function. Heterokonts contain four clades, ciliates two and apicomplexans only a single recognizable eIF4E clade. In the core dinoflagellates, the three clades were further divided into nine sub-clades based on the phylogenetic analysis and species representation. Six of the sub-clades included at least one member from all eleven core dinoflagellate species, suggesting duplication in their shared ancestor. Conservation within sub-clades varied, suggesting different selection pressures.ConclusionsPhylogenetic analysis of eIF4E in core dinoflagellates revealed complex layering of duplication and conservation when compared to other eukaryotes. Our results suggest that the diverse eIF4E family in core dinoflagellates may provide a toolkit to enable selective translation as a strategy for controlling gene expression in these enigmatic eukaryotes.

Project description:BACKGROUND:In spite of extensive research on the effect of mutation and selection on codon usage, a general model of codon usage bias due to mutational bias has been lacking. Because most amino acids allow synonymous GC content changing substitutions in the third codon position, the overall GC bias of a genome or genomic region is highly correlated with GC3, a measure of third position GC content. For individual amino acids as well, G/C ending codons usage generally increases with increasing GC bias and decreases with increasing AT bias. Arginine and leucine, amino acids that allow GC-changing synonymous substitutions in the first and third codon positions, have codons which may be expected to show different usage patterns. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS:In analyzing codon usage bias in hundreds of prokaryotic and plant genomes and in human genes, we find that two G-ending codons, AGG (arginine) and TTG (leucine), unlike all other G/C-ending codons, show overall usage that decreases with increasing GC bias, contrary to the usual expectation that G/C-ending codon usage should increase with increasing genomic GC bias. Moreover, the usage of some codons appears nonlinear, even nonmonotone, as a function of GC bias. To explain these observations, we propose a continuous-time Markov chain model of GC-biased synonymous substitution. This model correctly predicts the qualitative usage patterns of all codons, including nonlinear codon usage in isoleucine, arginine and leucine. The model accounts for 72%, 64% and 52% of the observed variability of codon usage in prokaryotes, plants and human respectively. When codons are grouped based on common GC content, 87%, 80% and 68% of the variation in usage is explained for prokaryotes, plants and human respectively. CONCLUSIONS:The model clarifies the sometimes-counterintuitive effects that GC mutational bias can have on codon usage, quantifies the influence of GC mutational bias and provides a natural null model relative to which other influences on codon bias may be measured.

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Transcriptome Analysis of Core Dinoflagellates Reveals a Universal Bias towards "GC" Rich Codons.

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Transcriptome Analysis of Core Dinoflagellates Reveals a Universal Bias towards "GC" Rich Codons.

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