Project description:Aedes aegypti mosquitoes infect hundreds of millions of people each year with dangerous viral pathogens including dengue, yellow fever, Zika, and chikungunya. Progress in understanding the biology of this insect, and developing tools to fight it, depends on the availablity of a high-quality genome assembly. Here we use DNA proximity ligaton (Hi-C) and Pacific Biosciences long reads to create AaegL5 - a highly contiguous A. aegypti reference.
Project description:African swine fever virus is highly contagious and causes a fatal infectious disease in pigs, resulting in a significant global impact on pork supply. The African swine fever virus RNA polymerase serves as a crucial multifunctional protein complex responsible for genome transcription and regulation. Therefore, it is essential to investigate its structural and functional characteristics for the prevention and control of African swine fever. Here, we determine the structures of endogenous African swine fever virus RNA polymerase in both nucleic acid-free and elongation states. The African swine fever virus RNA polymerase shares similarities with the core of typical RNA polymerases, but possesses a distinct subunit M1249L. Notably, the dynamic binding mode of M1249L with RNA polymerase, along with the C-terminal tail insertion of M1249L in the active center of DNA-RNA scaffold binding, suggests the potential of M1249L to regulate RNA polymerase activity within cells. These results are important for understanding the transcription cycle of African swine fever virus and for developing antiviral strategies.
Project description:The incomplete genome annotation of non-model organisms hampers molecular and proteomic studies. Proteomics informed by transcriptomics (PIT) is suited to non-model organisms because peptides are identified using transcriptomic, not genomic, data. Aedes aegypti is the mosquito vector for the (re-)emerging dengue, chikungunya, yellow fever and Zika viruses. An Ae. aegypti genome sequence is available, however experimental evidence for >90% of the Ae. aegypti proteome or the activity of transposable elements (TEs) that constitute 50% of the Ae. aegypti genome is lacking. We used PIT to characterise the proteome of the Aedes aegypti derived cell line Aag2. Hotspots of incomplete genome annotation were identified which are not explained by poor sequence and assembly quality. We developed criteria for the characterisation of proteomically active TEs and demonstrate that protein expression does not correlate with a TE’s genomic abundance. Finally, we identify Phasi Charoen-like virus as an unrecognised contaminant of Aag2 cells. We therefore present the first proteomic characterisation of mobile genetic elements, and provide proof-of-principle that PIT can evaluate a genome’s annotation to guide annotation efforts.
Project description:The Personalized Discovery Process is the only program offering patients treatment recommendations based on an empirically constructed Drosophila "fly" model of their disease. Special committee selects one of the one of the few 2-3 FDA approved drug combinations or single agents that improved survival in the fly cancer model.
Project description:We utilized Comparative Genomic Hybridization (CGH), using probes designed from de novo assembly of a testes transcriptome, to identify genes located on the sex chromosomes and autosomes of a stalk-eyed fly, Teleopsis quinqueguttata. Analysis of X chromosome gene content revealed the evolution of a neo-X chromosome that originated prior to the diversification of the family. Comparison of X-linkage across three species spanning the phylogenetic breadth of the family indicates abundant chromosomal gene movement, particularly for genes expressed exclusively in the testes.
