Morc1 reestablishes H3K9me3 heterochromatin on piRNA-targeted transposons in gonocytes.

To maintain fertility, male mice re-repress transposable elements (TEs) that were de-silenced in the early gonocytes before their differentiation into spermatogonia. However, the mechanism of TE silencing re-establishment remains unknown. Here, we found that the DNA-binding protein Morc1, in cooperation with the methyltransferase SetDB1, deposits the repressive histone mark H3K9me3 on a large fraction of activated TEs, leading to heterochromatin. Morc1 also triggers DNA methylation, but TEs targeted by Morc1-driven DNA methylation only slightly overlapped with those repressed by Morc1/SetDB1-dependent heterochromatin formation, suggesting that Morc1 silences TEs in two different manners. In contrast, TEs regulated by Morc1 and Miwi2, the nuclear PIWI-family protein, almost overlapped. Miwi2 binds to PIWI-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) that base-pair with TE mRNAs via sequence complementarity, while Morc1 DNA binding is not sequence specific, suggesting that Miwi2 selects its targets, and then, Morc1 acts to repress them with cofactors. A high-ordered mechanism of TE repression in gonocytes has been identified.

In vitro efficacy of cephamycins against multiple extended-spectrum ß-lactamase-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae, Proteus mirabilis, and Enterobacter cloacae isolates from dogs and cats.

The susceptibility of 218 extended-spectrum ß-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Enterobacteriaceae isolates from companion animals to three cephamycins (cefmetazole, flomoxef, and latamoxef) was investigated. Phenotypic testing found 8 of 120 Klebsiella pneumoniae (KP) and 15 of 69 Enterobacter cloacae (EC) isolates were ESBL and AmpC ß-lactamase (ABL) co-producers. Isolates of KP, Proteus mirabilis, and EC that only produced ESBL exhibited susceptibility rates to cefmetazole (95.5%, 82.7%, and 9.3%), flomoxef (99.1%, 96.6%, and 74.0%), and latamoxef (99.1%, 100%, and 100%), respectively. Notably, isolates of KP and EC co-producing ESBL and ABL had significantly lower susceptibility rates to the studied drugs when compared with only ESBL producers. This implies that the in vitro activity of cephamycins against ESBL-producing bacteria can differ depending on ABL production and bacterial species.

N-terminal region of Drosophila melanogaster Argonaute2 forms amyloid-like aggregates.

BACKGROUND: Argonaute proteins play a central role in RNA silencing by forming protein-small RNA complexes responsible for the silencing process. While most Argonaute proteins have a short N-terminal region, Argonaute2 in Drosophila melanogaster (DmAgo2) harbors a long and unique N-terminal region. Previous in vitro biochemical studies have shown that the loss of this region does not impair the RNA silencing activity of the complex. However, an N-terminal mutant of Drosophila melanogaster has demonstrated abnormal RNA silencing activity. To explore the causes of this discrepancy between in vitro and in vivo studies, we investigated the biophysical properties of the region. The N-terminal region is highly rich in glutamine and glycine residues, which is a well-known property for prion-like domains, a subclass of amyloid-forming peptides. Therefore, the possibility of the N-terminal region functioning as an amyloid was tested. RESULTS: Our in silico and biochemical assays demonstrated that the N-terminal region exhibits amyloid-specific properties. The region indeed formed aggregates that were not dissociated even in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate. Also, the aggregates enhanced the fluorescence intensity of thioflavin-T, an amyloid detection reagent. The kinetics of the aggregation followed that of typical amyloid formation exhibiting self-propagating activity. Furthermore, we directly visualized the aggregation process of the N-terminal region under fluorescence microscopy and found that the aggregations took fractal or fibril shapes. Together, the results indicate that the N-terminal region can form amyloid-like aggregates. CONCLUSIONS: Many other amyloid-forming peptides have been reported to modulate the function of proteins through their aggregation. Therefore, our findings raise the possibility that aggregation of the N-terminal region regulates the RNA silencing activity of DmAgo2.

Cloning and functional characterization of Chondrichthyes, cloudy catshark, Scyliorhinus torazame and whale shark, Rhincodon typus estrogen receptors.

Sex-steroid hormones are essential for normal reproductive activity in both sexes in all vertebrates. Estrogens are required for ovarian differentiation during a critical developmental stage and promote the growth and differentiation of the female reproductive system following puberty. Recent studies have shown that environmental estrogens influence the developing reproductive system as well as gametogenesis, especially in males. To understand the molecular mechanisms of estrogen actions and to evaluate estrogen receptor-ligand interactions in Elasmobranchii, we cloned a single estrogen receptor (ESR) from two shark species, the cloudy catshark (Scyliorhinus torazame) and whale shark (Rhincodon typus) and used an ERE-luciferase reporter assay system to characterize the interaction of these receptors with steroidal and other environmental estrogens. In the transient transfection ERE-luciferase reporter assay system, both shark ESR proteins displayed estrogen-dependent activation of transcription, and shark ESRs were more sensitive to 17beta-estradiol compared with other natural and synthetic estrogens. Further, the environmental chemicals, bisphenol A, nonylphenol, octylphenol and DDT could activate both shark ESRs. The assay system provides a tool for future studies examining the receptor-ligand interactions and estrogen disrupting mechanisms in Elasmobranchii.