Project description:Targeting cellular RNA by small molecules has come to the forefront of biotechnology and holds great promise for therapeutic use. Strategies to identify, validate and optimize these molecules are essential, but are still lacking in some aspects. In particular, the site-specific covalent labeling and modification of RNA in living cells poses many challenges. Here, we describe a general structure-guided approach to engineer non-covalent RNA aptamer–ligand complexes into their covalent counterparts using a molecular tether. The key is to modify the native ligand with an electrophilic handle that allows it to react specifically with a guanine at the RNA ligand binding site. We show that site-specific cross-linking between ligand and RNA is achieved in mammalian cells upon transfection of a genetically encoded version of the preQ1-I riboswitch aptamer. Further, we showcase the versatility of the tether by engineering the first covalent fluorescent light-up aptamer (coFLAP) out of the non-covalent Pepper FLAP. The coPepper system maintains strong fluorescence in live-cell imaging even after repeated washing. Thus, any background signal arising from unspecific fluorophore accumulation in the cell can be eliminated. In addition, we generated a bifunctional Pepper ligand containing a second handle for bioorthogonal chemistry to allow for easily traceable and efficient pulldown of the covalently linked target RNA. Finally, we provide evidence for the suitability of this tethering strategy for specific drug targeting. Taken together, our results show that functionalized ligands generated by rational design can cross-link site-specifically with target RNAs in cells, and hence, open up a wide range of applications in RNA biology that require irreversible small molecule binding.
Project description:Stress granules are dynamic non-membrane bound organelles made up of untranslating messenger ribonucleoproteins (mRNPs) that form when cells integrate stressful environmental cues resulting in stalled translation initiation complexes. Although stress granules dramatically alter mRNA and protein localization, understanding these complexes has proven to be challenging through conventional imaging, purification, and crosslinking approaches. We therefore developed an RNA proximity labeling technique, APEX-Seq, which uses the ascorbate peroxidase APEX2 to probe the spatial organization of the transcriptome. We show that APEX-Seq can resolve the localization of RNAs within the cell and determine their enrichment or depletion near key RNA-binding proteins. Matching both the spatial transcriptome using APEX-seq, and the spatial proteome using APEX-mass spectrometry (APEX-MS) provide new insights into the organization of translation initiation complexes on active mRNAs, as well as revealing unanticipated complexity in stress granule contents, and provides a powerful approach to explore the spatial environment of macromolecules.
Project description:Recent exon sequencing studies of human tumors have revealed that subunits of mSWI/SNF or BAF complexes are mutated in more than 20% of human malignancies, yet the mechanisms involved in tumor suppression is unclear. BAF chromatin remodeling complexes are polymorphic assemblies that use energy provided by ATP hydrolysis to regulate transcription through the control of chromatin structure and the placement of Polycomb (PcG) across the genome. Several proteins dedicated to this large multi-subunit complex, including SMARCA4 (BRG1) and BAF250A (ARID1A), are mutated at frequencies similar to that of many recognized tumor suppressors. In particular, the core ATPase BRG1 is mutated in 5-10% of childhood medulloblastoma (MB) and greater than 15% of Burkitt's Lymphoma (BL). Here we find a novel function of BAF complexes in decatenating newly replicated sister chromatids, which is necessary for proper chromosome segregation during mitosis. We find that deletion of Brg1, as well as the expression of Brg1 point mutants identified in human tumors leads to anaphase bridge formation (sister chromatids linked by catenated strands of DNA), and a G2/M phase block characteristic of the decatenation checkpoint. Endogenous BAF complexes directly interact with endogenous TopoIIα through BAF250a and are required for TopoIIα binding to about 12,000 sites over the genome. Our results indicate that TopoIIα’s chromatin binding is dependent on the ATPase activity of Brg1, which is compromised in oncogenic Brg1 mutants. These studies indicate that the ability of TopoIIα to prevent DNA entanglement at mitosis requires BAF complexes and suggest that this activity contributes to the role of BAF subunits as tumor suppressors. Examination of sites of TopoIIa activity in WT and Brg1-/- ES cells as defined by TopoIIa-DNA covalent adducts formed in the presence of etoposide
Project description:Identification of protein-protein interactions is a major goal of biological research. Despite technical advances over the last two decades, important but still largely unsolved challenges include the high-throughput detection of interactions directly from primary tissue and the identification of interactors of insoluble proteins that form higher-order structures. We have developed a novel, proximity-based labeling approach that uses antibodies to guide biotin deposition onto adjacent proteins in fixed cells and primary tissues. We showed our method to be specific and sensitive by labeling a mitochondrial matrix protein. Next, we used this method to profile the dynamic interactome of lamin A/C in multiple cell and tissue types under various treatment conditions. Our results suggest a considerable variation in the composition of the nuclear envelope of different tissues. Of note, DNA damage response proteins Ku70 and Ku80 are more abundant in the vicinity of lamin A/C after thermal stress. The ability to detect proximal proteins and putative interactors in intact tissues, and to compare affinities quantitatively under different conditions or in the presence of disease mutations, can provide a new window into cell biology and disease pathogenesis.