RESUMEN
Growing evidence from archaic and early modern human genomes brings new insights to the emergence of modern humans. We recount recent information collected from ancient DNA studies that inform us about the evolutionary pathway to modern humanity. These findings point to both individual- and population-level advantages underlying modern human expansion.
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Evolución Biológica , ADN Antiguo , Hominidae , Animales , Humanos , Genoma Humano , Hominidae/genéticaRESUMEN
The Genome Aggregation Database (gnomAD), widely recognized as the gold-standard reference map of human genetic variation, has largely overlooked tandem repeat (TR) expansions, despite the fact that TRs constitute â¼6% of our genome and are linked to over 50 human diseases. Here, we introduce the TR-gnomAD (https://wlcb.oit.uci.edu/TRgnomAD), a biobank-scale reference of 0.86 million TRs derived from 338,963 whole-genome sequencing (WGS) samples of diverse ancestries (39.5% non-European samples). TR-gnomAD offers critical insights into ancestry-specific disease prevalence using disparities in TR unit number frequencies among ancestries. Moreover, TR-gnomAD is able to differentiate between common, presumably benign TR expansions, which are prevalent in TR-gnomAD, from those potentially pathogenic TR expansions, which are found more frequently in disease groups than within TR-gnomAD. Together, TR-gnomAD is an invaluable resource for researchers and physicians to interpret TR expansions in individuals with genetic diseases.
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Genoma Humano , Secuencias Repetidas en Tándem , Humanos , Secuencias Repetidas en Tándem/genética , Secuenciación Completa del Genoma , Bases de Datos Genéticas , Expansión de las Repeticiones de ADN/genética , Estudio de Asociación del Genoma CompletoRESUMEN
Experimental studies on DNA transposable elements (TEs) have been limited in scale, leading to a lack of understanding of the factors influencing transposition activity, evolutionary dynamics, and application potential as genome engineering tools. We predicted 130 active DNA TEs from 102 metazoan genomes and evaluated their activity in human cells. We identified 40 active (integration-competent) TEs, surpassing the cumulative number (20) of TEs found previously. With this unified comparative data, we found that the Tc1/mariner superfamily exhibits elevated activity, potentially explaining their pervasive horizontal transfers. Further functional characterization of TEs revealed additional divergence in features such as insertion bias. Remarkably, in CAR-T therapy for hematological and solid tumors, Mariner2_AG (MAG), the most active DNA TE identified, largely outperformed two widely used vectors, the lentiviral vector and the TE-based vector SB100X. Overall, this study highlights the varied transposition features and evolutionary dynamics of DNA TEs and increases the TE toolbox diversity.
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Elementos Transponibles de ADN , Humanos , Elementos Transponibles de ADN/genética , Ingeniería Genética/métodos , Genoma Humano , Animales , Evolución MolecularRESUMEN
Duplication is a foundation of molecular evolution and a driver of genomic and complex diseases. Here, we develop a genome editing tool named Amplification Editing (AE) that enables programmable DNA duplication with precision at chromosomal scale. AE can duplicate human genomes ranging from 20 bp to 100 Mb, a size comparable to human chromosomes. AE exhibits activity across various cell types, encompassing diploid, haploid, and primary cells. AE exhibited up to 73.0% efficiency for 1 Mb and 3.4% for 100 Mb duplications, respectively. Whole-genome sequencing and deep sequencing of the junctions of edited sequences confirm the precision of duplication. AE can create chromosomal microduplications within disease-relevant regions in embryonic stem cells, indicating its potential for generating cellular and animal models. AE is a precise and efficient tool for chromosomal engineering and DNA duplication, broadening the landscape of precision genome editing from an individual genetic locus to the chromosomal scale.
Asunto(s)
Duplicación de Gen , Edición Génica , Genoma Humano , Humanos , Edición Génica/métodos , Sistemas CRISPR-Cas/genética , ADN/genética , Animales , Células Madre Embrionarias/metabolismo , Cromosomas Humanos/genéticaRESUMEN
Thermostable clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) and CRISPR-associated (Cas9) enzymes could improve genome-editing efficiency and delivery due to extended protein lifetimes. However, initial experimentation demonstrated Geobacillus stearothermophilus Cas9 (GeoCas9) to be virtually inactive when used in cultured human cells. Laboratory-evolved variants of GeoCas9 overcome this natural limitation by acquiring mutations in the wedge (WED) domain that produce >100-fold-higher genome-editing levels. Cryoelectron microscopy (cryo-EM) structures of the wild-type and improved GeoCas9 (iGeoCas9) enzymes reveal extended contacts between the WED domain of iGeoCas9 and DNA substrates. Biochemical analysis shows that iGeoCas9 accelerates DNA unwinding to capture substrates under the magnesium-restricted conditions typical of mammalian but not bacterial cells. These findings enabled rational engineering of other Cas9 orthologs to enhance genome-editing levels, pointing to a general strategy for editing enzyme improvement. Together, these results uncover a new role for the Cas9 WED domain in DNA unwinding and demonstrate how accelerated target unwinding dramatically improves Cas9-induced genome-editing activity.
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Proteína 9 Asociada a CRISPR , Sistemas CRISPR-Cas , Microscopía por Crioelectrón , ADN , Edición Génica , Humanos , Proteínas Bacterianas/metabolismo , Proteínas Bacterianas/genética , Proteínas Bacterianas/química , Proteína 9 Asociada a CRISPR/metabolismo , Proteína 9 Asociada a CRISPR/genética , Sistemas CRISPR-Cas/genética , ADN/metabolismo , ADN/genética , Edición Génica/métodos , Geobacillus stearothermophilus/genética , Geobacillus stearothermophilus/metabolismo , Células HEK293 , Dominios Proteicos , Genoma Humano , Modelos Moleculares , Estructura Terciaria de Proteína , Conformación de Ácido Nucleico , Biocatálisis , Magnesio/química , Magnesio/metabolismoRESUMEN
The cleavage of zygotes generates totipotent blastomeres. In human 8-cell blastomeres, zygotic genome activation (ZGA) occurs to initiate the ontogenesis program. However, capturing and maintaining totipotency in human cells pose significant challenges. Here, we realize culturing human totipotent blastomere-like cells (hTBLCs). We find that splicing inhibition can transiently reprogram human pluripotent stem cells into ZGA-like cells (ZLCs), which subsequently transition into stable hTBLCs after long-term passaging. Distinct from reported 8-cell-like cells (8CLCs), both ZLCs and hTBLCs widely silence pluripotent genes. Interestingly, ZLCs activate a particular group of ZGA-specific genes, and hTBLCs are enriched with pre-ZGA-specific genes. During spontaneous differentiation, hTBLCs re-enter the intermediate ZLC stage and further generate epiblast (EPI)-, primitive endoderm (PrE)-, and trophectoderm (TE)-like lineages, effectively recapitulating human pre-implantation development. Possessing both embryonic and extraembryonic developmental potency, hTBLCs can autonomously generate blastocyst-like structures in vitro without external cell signaling. In summary, our study provides key criteria and insights into human cell totipotency.
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Diferenciación Celular , Empalmosomas , Animales , Humanos , Ratones , Blastocisto/metabolismo , Blastocisto/citología , Blastómeros/metabolismo , Blastómeros/citología , Reprogramación Celular , Desarrollo Embrionario/genética , Estratos Germinativos/metabolismo , Estratos Germinativos/citología , Células Madre Pluripotentes/metabolismo , Células Madre Pluripotentes/citología , Empalme del ARN , Empalmosomas/metabolismo , Células Madre Totipotentes/metabolismo , Células Madre Totipotentes/citología , Cigoto/metabolismo , Células Cultivadas , Modelos Moleculares , Estructura Terciaria de Proteína , Genoma Humano , Análisis de la Célula Individual , Factor 15 de Diferenciación de Crecimiento/química , Factor 15 de Diferenciación de Crecimiento/genética , Factor 15 de Diferenciación de Crecimiento/metabolismo , Epigenómica , Linaje de la CélulaRESUMEN
We investigate a 2,000-year genetic transect through Scandinavia spanning the Iron Age to the present, based on 48 new and 249 published ancient genomes and genotypes from 16,638 modern individuals. We find regional variation in the timing and magnitude of gene flow from three sources: the eastern Baltic, the British-Irish Isles, and southern Europe. British-Irish ancestry was widespread in Scandinavia from the Viking period, whereas eastern Baltic ancestry is more localized to Gotland and central Sweden. In some regions, a drop in current levels of external ancestry suggests that ancient immigrants contributed proportionately less to the modern Scandinavian gene pool than indicated by the ancestry of genomes from the Viking and Medieval periods. Finally, we show that a north-south genetic cline that characterizes modern Scandinavians is mainly due to the differential levels of Uralic ancestry and that this cline existed in the Viking Age and possibly earlier.
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Genoma Humano , Humanos , Europa (Continente) , Variación Genética , Países Escandinavos y Nórdicos , Reino Unido , Población Blanca/genética , Población Blanca/historia , Migración HumanaRESUMEN
Autozygosity is associated with rare Mendelian disorders and clinically relevant quantitative traits. We investigated associations between the fraction of the genome in runs of homozygosity (FROH) and common diseases in Genes & Health (n = 23,978 British South Asians), UK Biobank (n = 397,184), and 23andMe. We show that restricting analysis to offspring of first cousins is an effective way of reducing confounding due to social/environmental correlates of FROH. Within this group in G&H+UK Biobank, we found experiment-wide significant associations between FROH and twelve common diseases. We replicated associations with type 2 diabetes (T2D) and post-traumatic stress disorder via within-sibling analysis in 23andMe (median n = 480,282). We estimated that autozygosity due to consanguinity accounts for 5%-18% of T2D cases among British Pakistanis. Our work highlights the possibility of widespread non-additive genetic effects on common diseases and has important implications for global populations with high rates of consanguinity.
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Consanguinidad , Diabetes Mellitus Tipo 2 , Humanos , Diabetes Mellitus Tipo 2/genética , Homocigoto , Fenotipo , Polimorfismo de Nucleótido Simple , Bancos de Muestras Biológicas , Genoma Humano , Predisposición Genética a la Enfermedad , Reino UnidoRESUMEN
CD4+ T cells play fundamental roles in orchestrating immune responses and tissue homeostasis. However, our inability to associate peptide human leukocyte antigen class-II (HLA-II) complexes with their cognate T cell receptors (TCRs) in an unbiased manner has hampered our understanding of CD4+ T cell function and role in pathologies. Here, we introduce TScan-II, a highly sensitive genome-scale CD4+ antigen discovery platform. This platform seamlessly integrates the endogenous HLA-II antigen-processing machinery in synthetic antigen-presenting cells and TCR signaling in T cells, enabling the simultaneous screening of multiple HLAs and TCRs. Leveraging genome-scale human, virome, and epitope mutagenesis libraries, TScan-II facilitates de novo antigen discovery and deep exploration of TCR specificity. We demonstrate TScan-II's potential for basic and translational research by identifying a non-canonical antigen for a cancer-reactive CD4+ T cell clone. Additionally, we identified two antigens for clonally expanded CD4+ T cells in Sjögren's disease, which bind distinct HLAs and are expressed in HLA-II-positive ductal cells within affected salivary glands.
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Linfocitos T CD4-Positivos , Epítopos de Linfocito T , Humanos , Células Presentadoras de Antígenos , Antígenos CD4/metabolismo , Antígenos HLA/metabolismo , Receptores de Antígenos de Linfocitos T/metabolismo , Línea Celular , Genoma HumanoRESUMEN
Many regions in the human genome vary in length among individuals due to variable numbers of tandem repeats (VNTRs). To assess the phenotypic impact of VNTRs genome-wide, we applied a statistical imputation approach to estimate the lengths of 9,561 autosomal VNTR loci in 418,136 unrelated UK Biobank participants and 838 GTEx participants. Association and statistical fine-mapping analyses identified 58 VNTRs that appeared to influence a complex trait in UK Biobank, 18 of which also appeared to modulate expression or splicing of a nearby gene. Non-coding VNTRs at TMCO1 and EIF3H appeared to generate the largest known contributions of common human genetic variation to risk of glaucoma and colorectal cancer, respectively. Each of these two VNTRs associated with a >2-fold range of risk across individuals. These results reveal a substantial and previously unappreciated role of non-coding VNTRs in human health and gene regulation.
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Canales de Calcio , Neoplasias Colorrectales , Factor 3 de Iniciación Eucariótica , Glaucoma , Repeticiones de Minisatélite , Humanos , Canales de Calcio/genética , Neoplasias Colorrectales/genética , Genoma Humano , Glaucoma/genética , Polimorfismo Genético , Factor 3 de Iniciación Eucariótica/genéticaRESUMEN
In this issue of Cell, Bryska-Bishop et al. report the release of the expanded, high-depth sequencing data that characterize the fourth phase of the 1000 Genomes Project. Using extensive comparisons and benchmarks, they demonstrate how this dataset is positioned to serve as a more comprehensive and accurate resource for global genomics.
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Genoma Humano , Genómica , Benchmarking , HumanosRESUMEN
Ancient DNA (aDNA) techniques applied to human genomics have significantly advanced in the past decade, enabling large-scale aDNA research, sometimes independent of human remains. This commentary reviews the major milestones of aDNA techniques and explores future directions to expand the scope of aDNA research and insights into present-day human health.
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ADN Antiguo , Genoma Humano , Historia Antigua , HumanosRESUMEN
We report genome-wide data from 33 Ashkenazi Jews (AJ), dated to the 14th century, obtained following a salvage excavation at the medieval Jewish cemetery of Erfurt, Germany. The Erfurt individuals are genetically similar to modern AJ, but they show more variability in Eastern European-related ancestry than modern AJ. A third of the Erfurt individuals carried a mitochondrial lineage common in modern AJ and eight carried pathogenic variants known to affect AJ today. These observations, together with high levels of runs of homozygosity, suggest that the Erfurt community had already experienced the major reduction in size that affected modern AJ. The Erfurt bottleneck was more severe, implying substructure in medieval AJ. Overall, our results suggest that the AJ founder event and the acquisition of the main sources of ancestry pre-dated the 14th century and highlight late medieval genetic heterogeneity no longer present in modern AJ.
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Judíos , Población Blanca , Humanos , Judíos/genética , Genética de Población , Genoma HumanoRESUMEN
The human genome contains hundreds of thousands of regions harboring copy-number variants (CNV). However, the phenotypic effects of most such polymorphisms are unknown because only larger CNVs have been ascertainable from SNP-array data generated by large biobanks. We developed a computational approach leveraging haplotype sharing in biobank cohorts to more sensitively detect CNVs. Applied to UK Biobank, this approach accounted for approximately half of all rare gene inactivation events produced by genomic structural variation. This CNV call set enabled a detailed analysis of associations between CNVs and 56 quantitative traits, identifying 269 independent associations (p < 5 × 10-8) likely to be causally driven by CNVs. Putative target genes were identifiable for nearly half of the loci, enabling insights into dosage sensitivity of these genes and uncovering several gene-trait relationships. These results demonstrate the ability of haplotype-informed analysis to provide insights into the genetic basis of human complex traits.
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Herencia Multifactorial , Sitios de Carácter Cuantitativo , Humanos , Variaciones en el Número de Copia de ADN , Fenotipo , Genoma Humano , Polimorfismo de Nucleótido Simple/genéticaRESUMEN
The 1000 Genomes Project (1kGP) is the largest fully open resource of whole-genome sequencing (WGS) data consented for public distribution without access or use restrictions. The final, phase 3 release of the 1kGP included 2,504 unrelated samples from 26 populations and was based primarily on low-coverage WGS. Here, we present a high-coverage 3,202-sample WGS 1kGP resource, which now includes 602 complete trios, sequenced to a depth of 30X using Illumina. We performed single-nucleotide variant (SNV) and short insertion and deletion (INDEL) discovery and generated a comprehensive set of structural variants (SVs) by integrating multiple analytic methods through a machine learning model. We show gains in sensitivity and precision of variant calls compared to phase 3, especially among rare SNVs as well as INDELs and SVs spanning frequency spectrum. We also generated an improved reference imputation panel, making variants discovered here accessible for association studies.
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Genoma Humano , Secuenciación Completa del Genoma , Femenino , Secuenciación de Nucleótidos de Alto Rendimiento/métodos , Humanos , Mutación INDEL , Masculino , Polimorfismo de Nucleótido SimpleRESUMEN
Non-allelic recombination between homologous repetitive elements contributes to evolution and human genetic disorders. Here, we combine short- and long-DNA read sequencing of repeat elements with a new bioinformatics pipeline to show that somatic recombination of Alu and L1 elements is widespread in the human genome. Our analysis uncovers tissue-specific non-allelic homologous recombination hallmarks; moreover, we find that centromeres and cancer-associated genes are enriched for retroelements that may act as recombination hotspots. We compare recombination profiles in human-induced pluripotent stem cells and differentiated neurons and find that the neuron-specific recombination of repeat elements accompanies chromatin changes during cell-fate determination. Finally, we report that somatic recombination profiles are altered in Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease, suggesting a link between retroelement recombination and genomic instability in neurodegeneration. This work highlights a significant contribution of the somatic recombination of repeat elements to genomic diversity in health and disease.
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Genoma Humano , Retroelementos , Elementos Alu/genética , Recombinación Homóloga , Humanos , Elementos de Nucleótido Esparcido Largo , Secuencias Repetitivas de Ácidos NucleicosRESUMEN
Rare copy-number variants (rCNVs) include deletions and duplications that occur infrequently in the global human population and can confer substantial risk for disease. In this study, we aimed to quantify the properties of haploinsufficiency (i.e., deletion intolerance) and triplosensitivity (i.e., duplication intolerance) throughout the human genome. We harmonized and meta-analyzed rCNVs from nearly one million individuals to construct a genome-wide catalog of dosage sensitivity across 54 disorders, which defined 163 dosage sensitive segments associated with at least one disorder. These segments were typically gene dense and often harbored dominant dosage sensitive driver genes, which we were able to prioritize using statistical fine-mapping. Finally, we designed an ensemble machine-learning model to predict probabilities of dosage sensitivity (pHaplo & pTriplo) for all autosomal genes, which identified 2,987 haploinsufficient and 1,559 triplosensitive genes, including 648 that were uniquely triplosensitive. This dosage sensitivity resource will provide broad utility for human disease research and clinical genetics.
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Variaciones en el Número de Copia de ADN , Genoma Humano , Variaciones en el Número de Copia de ADN/genética , Dosificación de Gen , Haploinsuficiencia/genética , HumanosRESUMEN
Nearly half of the human genome is comprised of diverse repetitive sequences ranging from satellite repeats to retrotransposable elements. Such sequences are susceptible to stepwise expansions, duplications, inversions, and recombination events which can compromise genome function. In this review, we discuss the higher-order folding mechanisms of compartmentalization and loop extrusion and how they shape, and are shaped by, heterochromatin. Using primarily mammalian model systems, we contrast mechanisms governing H3K9me3-mediated heterochromatinization of the repetitive genome and highlight emerging links between repetitive elements and chromatin folding.
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Heterocromatina , Secuencias Repetitivas de Ácidos Nucleicos , Animales , Genoma Humano , Heterocromatina/genética , Humanos , Mamíferos , Secuencias Repetitivas de Ácidos Nucleicos/genéticaRESUMEN
Searches for the genetic underpinnings of uniquely human traits have focused on human-specific divergence in conserved genomic regions, which reflects adaptive modifications of existing functional elements. However, the study of conserved regions excludes functional elements that descended from previously neutral regions. Here, we demonstrate that the fastest-evolved regions of the human genome, which we term "human ancestor quickly evolved regions" (HAQERs), rapidly diverged in an episodic burst of directional positive selection prior to the human-Neanderthal split, before transitioning to constraint within hominins. HAQERs are enriched for bivalent chromatin states, particularly in gastrointestinal and neurodevelopmental tissues, and genetic variants linked to neurodevelopmental disease. We developed a multiplex, single-cell in vivo enhancer assay to discover that rapid sequence divergence in HAQERs generated hominin-unique enhancers in the developing cerebral cortex. We propose that a lack of pleiotropic constraints and elevated mutation rates poised HAQERs for rapid adaptation and subsequent susceptibility to disease.
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Hominidae , Hombre de Neandertal , Animales , Humanos , Hominidae/genética , Secuencias Reguladoras de Ácidos Nucleicos , Hombre de Neandertal/genética , Genoma Humano , GenómicaRESUMEN
Unlike copy number variants (CNVs), inversions remain an underexplored genetic variation class. By integrating multiple genomic technologies, we discover 729 inversions in 41 human genomes. Approximately 85% of inversions <2 kbp form by twin-priming during L1 retrotransposition; 80% of the larger inversions are balanced and affect twice as many nucleotides as CNVs. Balanced inversions show an excess of common variants, and 72% are flanked by segmental duplications (SDs) or retrotransposons. Since flanking repeats promote non-allelic homologous recombination, we developed complementary approaches to identify recurrent inversion formation. We describe 40 recurrent inversions encompassing 0.6% of the genome, showing inversion rates up to 2.7 × 10-4 per locus per generation. Recurrent inversions exhibit a sex-chromosomal bias and co-localize with genomic disorder critical regions. We propose that inversion recurrence results in an elevated number of heterozygous carriers and structural SD diversity, which increases mutability in the population and predisposes specific haplotypes to disease-causing CNVs.