Variation in DNA-Damage Responses to an Inhalational Carcinogen (1,3-Butadiene) in Relation to Strain-Specific Differences in Chromatin Accessibility and Gene Transcription Profiles in C57BL/6J and CAST/EiJ Mice.
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ABSTRACT: The damaging effects of exposure to environmental toxicants differentially affect genetically distinct individuals, but the mechanisms contributing to these differences are poorly understood. Genetic variation affects the establishment of the gene regulatory landscape and thus gene expression, and we hypothesized that this contributes to the observed heterogeneity in individual responses to exogenous cellular insults.We performed an in vivo study of how genetic variation and chromatin organization may dictate susceptibility to DNA damage, and influence the cellular response to such damage, caused by an environmental toxicant.We measured DNA damage, messenger RNA (mRNA) and microRNA (miRNA) expression, and genome-wide chromatin accessibility in lung tissue from two genetically divergent inbred mouse strains, C57BL/6J and CAST/EiJ, both in unexposed mice and in mice exposed to a model DNA-damaging chemical, 1,3-butadiene.Our results showed that unexposed CAST/EiJ and C57BL/6J mice have very different chromatin organization and transcription profiles in the lung. Importantly, in unexposed CAST/EiJ mice, which acquired relatively less 1,3-butadiene-induced DNA damage, we observed increased transcription and a more accessible chromatin landscape around genes involved in detoxification pathways. Upon chemical exposure, chromatin was significantly remodeled in the lung of C57BL/6J mice, a strain that acquired higher levels of 1,3-butadiene-induced DNA damage, around the same genes, ultimately resembling the molecular profile of CAST/EiJ.These results suggest that strain-specific changes in chromatin and transcription in response to chemical exposure lead to a "compensation" for underlying genetic-driven interindividual differences in the baseline chromatin and transcriptional state. This work represents an example of how chemical and environmental exposures can be evaluated to better understand gene-by-environment interactions, and it demonstrates the important role of chromatin response in transcriptomic changes and, potentially, in deleterious effects of exposure. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP1937.
Variation in DNA-Damage Responses to an Inhalational Carcinogen (1,3-Butadiene) in Relation to Strain-Specific Differences in Chromatin Accessibility and Gene Transcription Profiles in C57BL/6J and CAST/EiJ Mice.
<h4>Background</h4>The damaging effects of exposure to environmental toxicants differentially affect genetically distinct individuals, but the mechanisms contributing to these differences are poorly understood. Genetic variation affects the establishment of the gene regulatory landscape and thus gene expression, and we hypothesized that this contributes to the observed heterogeneity in individual responses to exogenous cellular insults.<h4>Objectives</h4>We performed an <i>in vivo</i> study of h ...[more]
Project description:1,3-Butadiene (BD), a widely used industrial chemical and a ubiquitous environmental pollutant, is a known human carcinogen. Although genotoxicity is an established mechanism of the tumorigenicity of BD, epigenetic effects have also been observed in livers of mice exposed to the chemical. To better characterize the diverse molecular mechanisms of BD tumorigenicity, we evaluated genotoxic and epigenotoxic effects of BD exposure in mouse tissues that are target (lung and liver) and non-target (kidney) for BD-induced tumors. We hypothesized that epigenetic alterations may explain, at least in part, the tissue-specific differences in BD tumorigenicity in mice. We evaluated the level of N-7-(2,3,4-trihydroxybut-1-yl)guanine adducts and 1,4-bis-(guan-7-yl)-2,3-butanediol crosslinks, DNA methylation, and histone modifications in male C57BL/6 mice exposed to filtered air or 425 ppm of BD by inhalation (6 h/day, 5 days/week) for 2 weeks. Although DNA damage was observed in all three tissues of BD-exposed mice, variation in epigenetic effects clearly existed between the kidneys, liver, and lungs. Epigenetic alterations indicative of genomic instability, including demethylation of repetitive DNA sequences and alterations in histone-lysine acetylation, were evident in the liver and lung tissues of BD-exposed mice. Changes in DNA methylation were insignificant in the kidneys of treated mice, whereas marks of condensed heterochromatin and transcriptional silencing (histone-lysine trimethylation) were increased. These modifications may represent a potential mechanistic explanation for the lack of tumorigenesis in the kidney. Our results indicate that differential tissue susceptibility to chemical-induced tumorigenesis may be attributed to tissue-specific epigenetic alterations.
Project description:Here we introduce a test for lineage-specific selection of cis-regulation that can be applied to any gene set of interest. Applying the test to hundreds of gene sets in two diverged subspecies of mouse, we find evidence for selection acting on the cis-regulation of several functional classes, including those involved in both physiology (e.g. mitochondria-related genes and growth regulators) and behavior (e.g. locomotory-related genes and memory-related genes). These positively selected gene sets implicate potential targets of positive selection that are supported by quantitative trait loci, and accurately predict a number of phenotypic differences between the two subspecies, suggesting that the divergence in these traits may have been driven by adaptive evolution.
Project description:In a nutrient self-selection study, CAST/EiJ mice consumed more carbohydrate than fat while C57BL/6J (B6) mice showed the opposite preference. The present study revealed similar strain differences in preferences for isocaloric fat (Intralipid) and carbohydrate (sucrose, maltodextrin) solutions in chow-fed mice. In initial 2-day choice tests, percent fat intakes of CAST and B6 mice were 4-9% and 71-81% respectively. In subsequent nutrient vs. water tests, CAST mice consumed considerably less fat but not carbohydrate compared to B6 mice. Orosensory rather than postoral factors are implicated in the very low fat preference and intake of CAST mice. This is supported by results of a choice test with Intralipid mixed with non-nutritive sweeteners vs. non-sweet maltodextrin. The preference of CAST mice for sweetened fat exceeded that of B6 mice (94 vs. 74%) and absolute fat intakes were similar in the two strains. When given unsweetened Intralipid vs. water tests at ascending fat concentrations CAST mice displayed reduced fat preferences at 0.1-5% and reduced intakes at 0.5-5% concentrations, compared to B6 mice. The differential fat preferences of CAST and B6 mice may reflect differences in fat taste sensing or in central neural processes related to fat selection.
Project description:Study objectiveWe have previously established that CAST/EiJ (CAST) mice differ from normal mice, such as C57BL/6J (B6), in the timing of wheel-running onset relative to light/dark cycles. These mice provide an animal model for studies of the genetic and neurobiological basis for circadian phase misalignment in humans. Neither differences in endogenous circadian period nor the shape of the photic phase response curve explain the difference in the timing of activity onset between CAST and B6 mice, suggesting a mechanism downstream of the circadian clock. Here, we further test the hypothesis that the two strains differ with respect to circadian oscillations at the molecular level.DesignSleep/wake cycles were examined and rhythms of Period1 (Per1) and Period2 (Per2) expression were measured in the cerebral cortex, suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), and other hypothalamic regions.SettingBasic sleep and molecular research laboratory.Patients or participantsMale mice of the B6 and CAST inbred strains.InterventionsNone.Measurements and resultsSleep/wake cycles were advanced by approximately 4 h in CAST mice relative to B6 mice. This was paralleled by phase-advanced rhythms of Per1 and Per2 expression, as measured byin situ hybridization, in the cerebral cortex of CAST relative to B6. By contrast, the timing of circadian oscillations and the photic induction ofPer1 and Per2 expression in the SCN were unaffected by strain.ConclusionThe advanced phase of wheel running and sleep/wake cycles in CAST mice relative to B6 mice is apparently not associated with differences in molecular oscillations in the SCN clock itself, but most likely in mechanisms downstream of the SCN clock. CAST mice may therefore provide a model system to investigate circadian downstream mechanisms underlying unusual patterns of entrainment to the ambient photoperiod.CitationJiang P; Franklin KM; Duncan MJ; O'Hara BF; Wisor JP. Distinct phase relationships between suprachiasmatic molecular rhythms, cerebral cortex molecular rhythms, and behavioral rhythms in early runner (CAST/EiJ) and nocturnal (C57BL/6J) mice. SLEEP 2012;35(10):1385-1394.
Project description:We have identified candidate genes from the Feml2 QTL influencing femur length through allele specific expression analysis of growth plates in C57BL/6J x CAST/EiJ F1 hybrids. This work provides the foundation to identify novel genes affecting bone geometry.
Project description:Sequencing files provided here are mouse liver RNA-seq in two mouse strains: C57BL/6J and CAST/EiJ. This is part of a larger study published in PLoS Genetics (2021) "Harnessing natural variation to identify cis regulators of sex-biased gene expression in a multi-strain mouse liver model" that includes DNase-seq and H3K27ac ChIP-seq in mouse liver from the same two strains. This allows us to identify strain-shared ("core") and strain-unique sex-biased genes and enhancers.
Project description:Epigenetic effects of environmental chemicals are under intense investigation to fill existing knowledge gaps between environmental/occupational exposures and adverse health outcomes. Chromatin accessibility is one prominent mechanism of epigenetic control of transcription, and understanding of the chemical effects on both could inform the causal role of epigenetic alterations in disease mechanisms. In this study, we hypothesized that baseline variability in chromatin organization and transcription profiles among various tissues and mouse strains influence the outcome of exposure to the DNA damaging chemical 1,3-butadiene. To test this hypothesis, we evaluated DNA damage along with comprehensive quantification of RNA transcripts (RNA-seq), identification of accessible chromatin (ATAC-seq), and characterization of regions with histone modifications associated with active transcription (ChIP-seq for acetylation at histone 3 lysine 27, H3K27ac). We collected these data in the lung, liver, and kidney of mice from two genetically divergent strains, C57BL/6J and CAST/EiJ, that were exposed to clean air or to 1,3-butadiene (~600 ppm) for 2 weeks. We found that tissue effects dominate differences in both gene expression and chromatin states, followed by strain effects. At baseline, xenobiotic metabolism was consistently more active in CAST/EiJ, while immune system pathways were more active in C57BL/6J across tissues. Surprisingly, even though all three tissues in both strains harbored butadiene-induced DNA damage, little transcriptional effect of butadiene was observed in liver and kidney. Toxicologically relevant effects of butadiene in the lung were on the pathways of xenobiotic metabolism and inflammation. We also found that variability in chromatin accessibility across individuals (i.e., strains) only partially explains the variability in transcription. This study showed that variation in the basal states of epigenome and transcriptome may be useful indicators for individuals or tissues susceptible to genotoxic environmental chemicals.
Project description:Sequencing files provided here are mouse liver ChIP-seq for the activating histone mark H3K27ac in two mouse strains: C57BL/6J and CAST/EiJ. This is part of a larger study published in PLoS Genetics (2021) "Harnessing natural variation to identify cis regulators of sex-biased gene expression in a multi-strain mouse liver model" that includes RNA-seq and DNase-seq in mouse liver from the same two strains. This allows us to identify strain-shared ("core") and strain-unique sex-biased genes and enhancers.
Project description:OBJECTIVE:Low-density lipoprotein receptor (LDLR) and proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) are opposing regulators of plasma LDL-cholesterol levels. The PCSK9 gene exhibits many single or compound polymorphisms within or among mammalian species. This is case between the SPRET/EiJ (SPRET) and C57BL/6J (B6) mouse strains. We examined whether these polymorphisms could be associated with differential expression and activity of their respective PCSK9 molecules. METHODS:Liver expression of LDLR and PCSK9 transcripts were assessed by RT-PCR, and that of their corresponding proteins by immunoblotting. Purified recombinant PCSK9 proteins were assayed for their ability to degrade LDLR. Pcsk9 gene proximal promoters were tested for activation of a luciferase reporter gene. RESULTS:SPRET and B6 mice carried comparable levels of plasma cholesterol in spite of the fact that SPRET mice expressed less PCSK9 and more LDLR in liver. There were indels and single-base differences between their Pcsk9 cDNA and promoter sequences. Ex vivo, SPRET PCSK9 protein was less secreted but was more active at degrading LDLR. Its gene promoter was more active at driving expression of the luciferase reporter. CONCLUSIONS:Collectively, these results suggest that, compared to the B6 mouse, the SPRET mouse may represent an example of absence of direct correlation between PCSK9 and cholesterol levels in plasma, due to genetic variations leading to reduced secretion of PCSK9 associated with greater LDLR-degrading activity.