Identification of Staphylococcus aureus Cellular Pathways Affected by the Stilbenoid Lead Drug SK-03-92 Using a Microarray.

The mechanism of action for a new lead stilbene compound coded SK-03-92 with bactericidal activity against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is unknown. To gain insight into the killing process, transcriptional profiling was performed on SK-03-92 treated vs. untreated S. aureus. Fourteen genes were upregulated and 38 genes downregulated by SK-03-92 treatment. Genes involved in sortase A production, protein metabolism, and transcriptional regulation were upregulated, whereas genes encoding transporters, purine synthesis proteins, and a putative two-component system (SACOL2360 (MW2284) and SACOL2361 (MW2285)) were downregulated by SK-03-92 treatment. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction analyses validated upregulation of srtA and tdk as well as downregulation of the MW2284/MW2285 and purine biosynthesis genes in the drug-treated population. A quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis of MW2284 and MW2285 mutants compared to wild-type cells demonstrated that the srtA gene was upregulated by both putative two-component regulatory gene mutants compared to the wild-type strain. Using a transcription profiling technique, we have identified several cellular pathways regulated by SK-03-92 treatment, including a putative two-component system that may regulate srtA and other genes that could be tied to the SK-03-92 mechanism of action, biofilm formation, and drug persisters.

MAGI: Methylation analysis using genome information.

By incorporating annotation information into the analysis of next-generation sequencing DNA methylation data, we provide an improvement in performance over current testing procedures. Methylation analysis using genome information (MAGI) is applicable for both unreplicated and replicated data, and provides an effective analysis for studies with low sequencing depth. When compared with current tests, the annotation-informed tests provide an increase in statistical power and offer a significance-based interpretation of differential methylation.

Molecular response to the pathogen Phytophthora sojae among ten soybean near isogenic lines revealed by comparative transcriptomics.

BACKGROUND: Phytophthora root and stem rot (PRR) of soybean, caused by Phytophthora sojae, is controlled by Rps genes. However, little is known regarding the Rps-induced molecular responses to P. sojae and how they actually overlap. We thus sequenced, analyzed, and compared the transcriptomes of 10 near isogenic lines (NILs), each with a unique Rps gene/allele, and the susceptible parent Williams, pre- and post-inoculation with the pathogen. RESULTS: A total of 4,330 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified in Williams versus 2,014 to 5,499 DEGs in individual NILs upon inoculation with the pathogen. Comparisons of the DEGs between the NILs and Williams identified incompatible interaction genes (IIGs) and compatible interaction genes (CIGs). Hierarchical cluster and heatmap analyses consistently grouped the NILs into three clusters: Cluster I (Rps1-a), Cluster II (Rps1-b, 1-c and 1-k) and Cluster III (Rps3-a, 3-b, 3-c, 4, 5, and 6), suggesting an overlap in Rps-induced defense signaling among certain NILs. Gene ontology (GO) analysis revealed associations between members of the WRKY family and incompatible reactions and between a number of phytohormone signaling pathways and incompatible/compatible interactions. These associations appear to be distinguished according to the NIL clusters. CONCLUSIONS: This study characterized genes and multiple branches of putative regulatory networks associated with resistance to P. sojae in ten soybean NILs, and depicted functional "fingerprints" of individual Rps-mediated resistance responses through comparative transcriptomic analysis. Of particular interest are dramatic variations of detected DEGs, putatively involved in ethylene (ET)-, jasmonic acid (JA)-, (reactive oxygen species) ROS-, and (MAP-kinase) MAPK- signaling, among these soybean NILs, implicating their important roles of these signaling in differentiating molecular defense responses. We hypothesize that different timing and robustness in defense signaling to the same pathogen may be largely responsible for such variations.

Robust adjustment of sequence tag abundance.

MOTIVATION: The majority of next-generation sequencing technologies effectively sample small amounts of DNA or RNA that are amplified (i.e. copied) before sequencing. The amplification process is not perfect, leading to extreme bias in sequenced read counts. We present a novel procedure to account for amplification bias and demonstrate its effectiveness in mitigating gene length dependence when estimating true gene expression. RESULTS: We tested the proposed method on simulated and real data. Simulations indicated that our method captures true gene expression more effectively than classic censoring-based approaches and leads to power gains in differential expression testing, particularly for shorter genes with high transcription rates. We applied our method to an unreplicated Arabidopsis RNA-seq dataset resulting in disparate gene ontologies arising from gene set enrichment analyses. AVAILABILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION: R code to perform the RASTA procedures is freely available on the web at www.stat.purdue.edu/∼doerge/.

Non-trisomic homeobox gene expression during craniofacial development in the Ts65Dn mouse model of Down syndrome.

Trisomy 21 in humans causes cognitive impairment, craniofacial dysmorphology, and heart defects collectively referred to as Down syndrome. Yet, the pathophysiology of these phenotypes is not well understood. Craniofacial alterations may lead to complications in breathing, eating, and communication. Ts65Dn mice exhibit craniofacial alterations that model Down syndrome including a small mandible. We show that Ts65Dn embryos at 13.5 days gestation (E13.5) have a smaller mandibular precursor but a normal sized tongue as compared to euploid embryos, suggesting a relative instead of actual macroglossia originates during development. Neurological tissues were also altered in E13.5 trisomic embryos. Our array analysis found 155 differentially expressed non-trisomic genes in the trisomic E13.5 mandible, including 20 genes containing a homeobox DNA binding domain. Additionally, Sox9, important in skeletal formation and cell proliferation, was upregulated in Ts65Dn mandible precursors. Our results suggest trisomy causes altered expression of non-trisomic genes in development leading to structural changes associated with DS. Identification of genetic pathways disrupted by trisomy is an important step in proposing rational therapies at relevant time points to ameliorate craniofacial abnormalities in DS and other congenital disorders.