Frameshift Events Research Articles

79 Biomarker of response to immunotherapy

79 Biomarker of response to immunotherapy

Systematic analysis of nonprogrammed frameshift suppression in E. coli via translational tiling proteomics

The synthesis of proteins as encoded in the genome depends critically on translational fidelity. Nevertheless, errors inevitably occur, and those that result in reading frame shifts are particularly consequential because the resulting polypeptides are typically nonfunctional. Despite the generally maladaptive impact of such errors, the proper decoding of certain mRNAs, including many viral mRNAs, depends on a process known as programmed ribosomal frameshifting. The fact that these programmed events, commonly involving a shift to the -1 frame, occur at specific evolutionarily optimized "slippery" sites has facilitated mechanistic investigation. By contrast, less is known about the scope and nature of error (i.e., nonprogrammed) frameshifting. Here, we examine error frameshifting by monitoring spontaneous frameshift events that suppress the effects of single base pair deletions affecting two unrelated test proteins. To map the precise sites of frameshifting, we developed a targeted mass spectrometry-based method called "translational tiling proteomics" for interrogating the full set of possible -1 slippage events that could produce the observed frameshift suppression. Surprisingly, such events occur at many sites along the transcripts, involving up to one half of the available codons. Only a subset of these resembled canonical "slippery" sites, implicating alternative mechanisms potentially involving noncognate mispairing events. Additionally, the aggregate frequency of these events (ranging from 1 to 10% in our test cases) was higher than we might have anticipated. Our findings point to an unexpected degree of mechanistic diversity among ribosomal frameshifting events and suggest that frameshifted products may contribute more significantly to the proteome than generally assumed.

Single-molecule imaging reveals distinct elongation and frameshifting dynamics between frames of expanded RNA repeats in C9ORF72-ALS/FTD

C9ORF72 hexanucleotide repeat expansion is the most common genetic cause of both amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD). One pathogenic mechanism is the accumulation of toxic dipeptide repeat (DPR) proteins like poly-GA, GP and GR, produced by the noncanonical translation of the expanded RNA repeats. However, how different DPRs are synthesized remains elusive. Here, we use single-molecule imaging techniques to directly measure the translation dynamics of different DPRs. Besides initiation, translation elongation rates vary drastically between different frames, with GP slower than GA and GR the slowest. We directly visualize frameshift events using a two-color single-molecule translation assay. The repeat expansion enhances frameshifting, but the overall frequency is low. There is a higher chance of GR-to-GA shift than in the reversed direction. Finally, the ribosome-associated protein quality control (RQC) factors ZNF598 and Pelota modulate the translation dynamics, and the repeat RNA sequence is important for invoking the RQC pathway. This study reveals that multiple translation steps modulate the final DPR production. Understanding repeat RNA translation is critically important to decipher the DPR-mediated pathogenesis and identify potential therapeutic targets in C9ORF72-ALS/FTD.

New Insights into the Genome Organization of Yeast Double-Stranded RNA LBC Viruses.

The yeasts Torulaspora delbrueckii (Td) and Saccharomyces cerevisiae (Sc) may show a killer phenotype that is encoded in dsRNA M viruses (V-M), which require the helper activity of another dsRNA virus (V-LA or V-LBC) for replication. Recently, two TdV-LBCbarr genomes, which share sequence identity with ScV-LBC counterparts, were characterized by high-throughput sequencing (HTS). They also share some similar characteristics with Sc-LA viruses. This may explain why TdV-LBCbarr has helper capability to maintain M viruses, whereas ScV-LBC does not. We here analyze two stretches with low sequence identity (LIS I and LIS II) that were found in TdV-LBCbarr Gag-Pol proteins when comparing with the homologous regions of ScV-LBC. These stretches may result from successive nucleotide insertions or deletions (indels) that allow compensatory frameshift events required to maintain specific functions of the RNA-polymerase, while modifying other functions such as the ability to bind V-M (+)RNA for packaging. The presence of an additional frameshifting site in LIS I may ensure the synthesis of a certain amount of RNA-polymerase until the new compensatory indel appears. Additional 5′- and 3′-extra sequences were found beyond V-LBC canonical genomes. Most extra sequences showed high identity to some stretches of the canonical genomes and can form stem-loop structures. Further, the 3′-extra sequence of two ScV-LBC genomes contains rRNA stretches. The origin and possible functions of these extra sequences are here discussed.

Rapid protein sequence evolution via compensatory frameshift is widespread in RNA virus genomes

BackgroundRNA viruses possess remarkable evolutionary versatility driven by the high mutability of their genomes. Frameshifting nucleotide insertions or deletions (indels), which cause the premature termination of proteins, are frequently observed in the coding sequences of various viral genomes. When a secondary indel occurs near the primary indel site, the open reading frame can be restored to produce functional proteins, a phenomenon known as the compensatory frameshift.ResultsIn this study, we systematically analyzed publicly available viral genome sequences and identified compensatory frameshift events in hundreds of viral protein-coding sequences. Compensatory frameshift events resulted in large-scale amino acid differences between the compensatory frameshift form and the wild type even though their nucleotide sequences were almost identical. Phylogenetic analyses revealed that the evolutionary distance between proteins with and without a compensatory frameshift were significantly overestimated because amino acid mismatches caused by compensatory frameshifts were counted as substitutions. Further, this could cause compensatory frameshift forms to branch in different locations in the protein and nucleotide trees, which may obscure the correct interpretation of phylogenetic relationships between variant viruses.ConclusionsOur results imply that the compensatory frameshift is one of the mechanisms driving the rapid protein evolution of RNA viruses and potentially assisting their host-range expansion and adaptation.

Neoantigens Are Typically Associated with Intact HLA Class I Presentation in Early-Stage Follicular Lymphoma

Neoantigens Are Typically Associated with Intact HLA Class I Presentation in Early-Stage Follicular Lymphoma

Opportunities for Antigen Discovery in Metastatic Breast Cancer.

Immune checkpoint inhibitor-based immunotherapy (ICI) of breast cancer is currently efficacious in a fraction of triple negative breast cancers (TNBC) as these cancers generally carry high tumor mutation burden (TMB) and show increased tumor infiltration by CD8+ T cells. However, most estrogen receptor positive breast cancers (ERBC) have low TMB and/or are infiltrated with immunosuppressive regulatory T cells (Tregs) and thus fail to induce a significant anti-tumor immune response. Our understanding of the immune underpinning of the anti-tumor effects of CDK4/6 inhibitor (CDKi) treatment coupled with new knowledge about the mechanisms of tolerance to self-antigens suggests a way forward, specifically via characterizing and exploiting the repertoire of tumor antigens expressed by metastatic ERBC. These treatment-associated tumor antigens (TATA) may include the conventional tumor neoantigens (TNA) encoded by single nucleotide mutations, TNA encoded by tumor specific aberrant RNA transcription, splicing and DNA replication induced frameshift (FS) events as well as the shared tumor antigens. The latter may include the conventional tumor associated antigens (TAA), cancer-testis antigens (CTA) and antigens encoded by the endogenous retroviral (ERV) like sequences and repetitive DNA sequences induced by ET and CDKi treatment. An approach to identifying these antigens is outlined as this will support the development of a multi-antigen-based immunotherapy strategy for improved targeting of metastatic disease with potential for minimal autoimmune toxicity against normal tissues.

Epigenetic loss of the transfer RNA-modifying enzyme TYW2 induces ribosome frameshifts in colon cancer

Transfer RNA (tRNA) activity is tightly regulated to provide a physiological protein translation, and tRNA chemical modifications control its function in a complex with ribosomes and messenger RNAs (mRNAs). In this regard, the correct hypermodification of position G37 of phenylalanine-tRNA, adjacent to the anticodon, is critical to prevent ribosome frameshifting events. Here we report that the tRNA-yW Synthesizing Protein 2 (TYW2) undergoes promoter hypermethylation-associated transcriptional silencing in human cancer, particularly in colorectal tumors. The epigenetic loss of TYW2 induces guanosine hypomodification in phenylalanine-tRNA, an increase in -1 ribosome frameshift events, and down-regulation of transcripts by mRNA decay, such as of the key cancer gene ROBO1. Importantly, TYW2 epigenetic inactivation is linked to poor overall survival in patients with early-stage colorectal cancer, a finding that could be related to the observed acquisition of enhanced migration properties and epithelial-to-mesenchymal features in the colon cancer cells that harbor TYW2 DNA methylation-associated loss. These findings provide an illustrative example of how epigenetic changes can modify the epitranscriptome and further support a role for tRNA modifications in cancer biology.

Cytotoxic activity of copper(ii), nickel(ii) and platinum(ii) thiosemicarbazone derivatives: interaction with DNA and the H2A histone peptide.

Metal complexes still represent promising pharmacological tools in the development of new anticancer drugs. Bis(citronellalthiosemicarbazonate)nickel(ii) is a metal compound extremely effective against leukemic and NCS cancer cell lines. Preliminary experiments performed with this compound and with its Cu(ii) and Pt(ii) analogues evidenced alterations, detectable by comet assay, in the DNA of treated U937 cells. In addition, [Cu(tcitr)2] and [Pt(tcitr)2] were also able to induce gene mutations and produce frameshift events. To gain further insights into the mechanism of action of these metal compounds, we carried out a multidisciplinary study to investigate whether their biological activity can be ascribed to the direct interaction with DNA or with chromatin. The DNA interaction was investigated by means of CD and UV-Vis spectroscopic techniques and by AFM, whereas the chromatin interaction was studied by analyzing the effects of the compounds on the structure of a peptide that mimicks the potential metal binding site in the "C-tail" region of histone H2A by means of NMR, CD, UV-Vis and MS. The intensities of the effects induced by the metal compounds on the peptide follow the order [Ni(tcitr)2] > [Pt(tcitr)2] ≫ [Cu(tcitr)2]. From the AFM data, a remarkable DNA compaction was observed in the presence of [Pt(tcitr)2], while [Ni(tcitr)2] causes the formation of large interlaced DNA aggregates.

FrameOUT and FrameOUTDB: A web based application and repository for the identification and analysis of frameshift mutations

Frameshift, one of the three classes of recoding, leads to waste of energy, resources and activity of biosynthetic machinery. In addition, some peptides, probably cycotoxic synthesized after frameshifts, results in diseases and disorders like muscular dystrophies, lysosomal storage disorders, and cancer. Hidden Stop Codons that occur naturally in coding sequences among all organisms, are associated with the early termination of translation for incorrect reading frame selection and help to reduce the metabolic cost related to the frame-shift events. Hidden stop codons and their association with numerous diseases. These codons are associated with the early termination of translation for incorrect reading frame selection and help to reduce the metabolic cost related to the frame-shift events. There are lots of appearances of hidden stops in mitochondrial genomes and we tried to study this putative event in mitochondrial genomes of vertebrates. To reduce this gap, this work presents an algorithmic web based tool to study hidden stops in frame-shifted translation for vertebrate mitochondrial genomes through respective genetic code system. FrameOUT (FO), an algorithmic web based application, predicts mutations in a user input sequence, be it a diseased or a normal sequence by implementation of Hidden Markov Model. FODB is a collection of all available Frameshift events and their association with various diseases.

Frameshift events predict anti-PD-1/L1 response in head and neck cancer.

Programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) inhibitors have efficacy in treating squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN), but objective response rates are low. PD-1 ligand (PD-L1) expression alone is not considered a robust predictor of response and additional biomarkers are needed. This 3-year observational cohort followed 126 SCCHN patients treated with anti-PD-1/L1 therapy. Prior to treatment, 81 (64%) had targeted massively parallel tumor sequencing. Of these, 42 (52%) underwent fluorescence-activated cell sorting and PD-L1 immunohistochemistry for tumor immunoprofiling. Six (5%) complete responses (CRs) and 11 (9%) partial responses (PRs) were observed. Those treated with prior chemotherapy (98, 78%) versus only surgery and/or radiation had longer overall survival (OS) (10 vs. 3 months, P = 0.02). Smokers had a higher total mutational burden (TMB) (P = 0.01). Virus-positive patients had a lower TMB (P < 0.01) and improved OS (P = 0.02). Among virus-negative responders, NOTCH1 and SMARCA4 were more frequently mutated and frameshift events in tumor suppressor genes occurred more frequently (P = 0.03). Higher TMB and CD8+ T cell infiltrates predicted anti-PD-1/L1 benefit (P < 0.01, P < 0.01, respectively) among virus-negative tumors. TIM-3/LAG-3 coexpression with PD-1 was higher on T cells among nonresponders (P = 0.03 and 0.02, respectively). Somatic frameshift events in tumor suppressor genes and higher TMB among virus-negative SCCHN tumors predict anti-PD-1/L1 response.

Populations adapt to fluctuating selection using derived and ancestral allelic diversity.

Populations can adapt to changing environments by using allelic diversity, yet whether diversity is recently derived or ancestral is often debated. Although evolution could productively use both types of diversity in a changing environment, their relative frequency has not been quantified. We address this question experimentally using budding yeast strains that harbor a tandem repeat containing URA3 gene, which we expose to cyclical selection and counterselection. We characterize and quantify the dynamics of frameshift events in the URA3 gene in eight populations over 12 cycles of selection and find that ancestral alleles account for 10-20% of all adaptive events. Using a general model of fluctuating selection, we determine how these results depend on mutation rates, population sizes, and fluctuation timescales. We quantify the contribution of derived alleles to the adaptation process using the de novo mutation rate along the population's ancestral lineage, a novel measure that is applicable in a wide range of settings. We find that the adaptive dynamics undergoes a sharp transition from selection on ancestral alleles to selection on derived alleles as fluctuation timescales increase. Our results demonstrate that fluctuations can select between different modes of adaptation over evolutionary timescales.

Limitations of the 'ambush hypothesis' at the single-gene scale: what codon biases are to blame?

Ribosomal frameshifting, a translational error, catastrophically alters the amino acid composition of the nascent protein by shifting the reading frame from the intended contiguous trinucleotide reading. Frameshift events waste energy and resources, and peptide products have unpredictable cytotoxic effects. The 'Ambush Hypothesis' (Seligmann and Pollock 2004, DNA Cell Biol 23:701-5) suggests there is a selective pressure favouring the evolution of out-of-frame ('hidden') stop codons. Although this hypothesis has gained empirical support through whole-genome studies, it is presently unknown whether it can be applied at a single-gene scale. Herein, we report such an investigation using the gene, polyketide synthase (PKS), among species of fungi. Contrary to expectation, genes presented with significantly lower number of hidden stop codons than expected in a selection-neutral model (p < 0.0005), suggesting both non-adherence to the ambush hypothesis as well as suppression of hidden stop codon evolution. It is known that there are multiple adaptive considerations determining codon selection during evolution, and that the information-holding potential of the genetic code is finite. We hypothesize that the reason for low hidden stops in PKS genes is due to competing 'codon biases' that are prioritized over the selective pressure favouring the emergence of hidden stops. Future studies of the ambush hypothesis in the context of other drivers of codon bias may allow this hypothesis to be molded into a comprehensive genetic theory that can be integrated within the broader genetic theory of codon bias and applied to the genetic code at any scale of analysis.

A stochastic model of translation with −1 programmed ribosomal frameshifting

Many viruses produce multiple proteins from a single mRNA sequence by encoding overlapping genes. One mechanism to decode both genes, which reside in alternate reading frames, is −1 programmed ribosomal frameshifting. Although recognized for over 25 years, the molecular and physical mechanism of −1 frameshifting remains poorly understood. We have developed a mathematical model that treats mRNA translation and associated −1 frameshifting as a stochastic process in which the transition probabilities are based on the energetics of local molecular interactions. The model predicts both the location and efficiency of −1 frameshift events in HIV-1. Moreover, we compute −1 frameshift efficiencies upon mutations in the viral mRNA sequence and variations in relative tRNA abundances, predictions that are directly testable in experiment.

Tumor Neoantigens Are Abundant Across Cancers

Tumor neoantigens are a promising class of vaccine immunogens as they arise from gene alterations in tumor cells and are hence exquisitely tumor-specific. We recently reported the development of a pipeline that leverages massively parallel sequencing data with HLA-peptide binding predictions to identify candidate neoantigens. By applying this pipeline to cases of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) with known HLA typing, we described the prediction of personal tumor neoantigens against which long-lived memory T cell responses developed following remission-inducing therapy. Our pipeline thus provides a method for selecting neoantigens for developing future personalized tumor vaccines. In order to extend this approach beyond CLL, we sought to gain estimates of tumor neoantigen loads across cancers. We hypothesized that the numbers of neoantigens within cancers would be proportional to their mutation frequency.To examine this hypothesis, we turned to the extensive collections of whole-exome sequencing (WES) data that have been generated through recent large-scale cancer sequencing projects. In order to generate accurate estimates of personal tumor neoantigen loads, HLA typing information is required. While in theory this information should be directly extractable from WES, direct inference of HLA type from standard WES reads has not been previously possible due to suboptimal alignments against a standard reference genome arising from the highly polymorphic nature of the HLA region. We therefore developed a strategy to optimize alignment. Based on the IMGT database, we constructed a reference library of all known HLA alleles (6597 unique entries) and aligned WES reads containing one or more short sequence segments corresponding to any HLA allele against this reference using the Novoalign software. HLA alleles were then inferred through a model that enabled calculation of allele probabilities by taking into account the number and quality of reads aligned to each allele. Alleles with the highest probabilities were then identified as winners. We trained the algorithm on 8 CLL cases for which WES data and HLA typing (based on conventional molecular typing) were available, and established a performance accuracy of ∼94% (45 of 48 alleles). This was further validated using a set of 133 Hap Map samples with known HLA typing, in which 94.61% (755 of 798) alleles were identified correctly at protein level resolution.We applied the HLA typing algorithm together with the neoantigen discovery pipeline across WES from 2488 cases collected from publicly available datasets of 13 diverse cancers. Mutation rates in solid tumor malignancies were consistently higher, in some cases by more than an order of magnitude, than the blood malignancies. For example, the high mutation rate tumor melanoma displayed a median of 300 (range, 34-4276) missense mutations per case, while renal cell carcinoma (RCC) had 41 (range, 10-101) and CLL had 16 (range, 0-75). The number of frame-shifting events (indels and termination read-throughs) was generally 10-fold or more lower in each tumor type than missense mutations and did not correlate with the number of missense mutations. As expected, the rate of predicted HLA binding peptides mirrored the somatic mutation rate per tumor type. The median number of predicted class I HLA-binding neopeptides (with IC50 < 500 nM) per sample generated from missense and frameshift events for melanoma was 488 (range: 18-5811), for RCC, 80 (range: 6-407), and for CLL 24 (range 2-124). Overall, we found an average of 1.5 HLA-binding peptides (i.e. with IC50<500nM) was generated per missense mutation and 4 binding peptides per frameshift mutation.By predicting tumor neoantigens in a variety of low and high mutation rate cancers, we established that dozens to hundreds of potential neoantigens are present in most tumors. In the process, we developed a highly accurate analytic approach that provides a solution for extracting HLA typing information from WES data but which could, in principle, be applied to other highly polymorphic regions of the genome. Ongoing studies focus on integrating estimates of tumor neoantigen load with understanding of HLA expression in order to optimize selection of antigen targets to build future personalized tumor vaccines. Disclosures:No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

Deep-Sequencing Of The Molecular Landscape In Burkitt Lymphoma/Leukemia

IntroductionIn 2012, whole-genome, whole-exome and global transcriptome sequencing studies unraveled the molecular complexity of Burkitt lymphoma (BL). Amongst a set of up to 70 recurrently mutated genes (Love C. et al., Nat. Genet. 2012), essential affected oncogenic pathways were discovered including mutations in MYC and the transcription factor TCF3 (Schmitz R. et al., Nature 2012), as well as inactivating mutations of ID3 (Richter J. et al., Nat. Genet. 2012). Aims(1) To validate the mutation frequency and mutational landscape of selected candidate target genes (ID3, MYC, TCF3, and TP53) in an independent cohort of 60 adult patients with Burkitt Lymphoma/Leukemia. (2) To investigate the clonal composition and associations with BCL2 rearrangements using a quantitative next-generation sequencing assay. MethodsThe patient cohort included 33 cases with Burkitt Leukemia (33/60, 55.0%) and 27 cases with Burkitt Lymphoma (27/60, 45.0%). 36 (60.0%) of these were single-hit lymphomas only harboring MYC-rearrangements, whereas 24 (40.0%) cases were multiple-hit lymphomas harboring in addition at least one of the following gene rearrangements: BCL2, BCL6, and/or CCND1. The median age was 60.8 years (range 5.5 - 82.7). All cases were comprehensively characterized by cytomorphology, cytogenetics and FISH, including evaluation for MYC-, BCL2-, BCL6-, and CCND1-rearrangements. Four candidate genes were sequenced using a quantitative deep-sequencing NGS assay (median coverage of 633 reads per mutation). The lower limit of detection of mutations was set at 2%. Amplicon sequencing libraries were prepared using genomic DNA extracted from mononuclear cells. The following regions were investigated: ID3 (exons 1-2), MYC (exons 2-3), TCF3 (exons 18), and TP53 (exons 4-11), respectively. ResultsIn total, 112 mutations were detected in 39/60 (56.5%) patients. 9/112 (8.0%) were detected with a clone size of <10%. In 17 patients with single mutations, either MYC (n=7) or TP53 was detected mutated (n=10). Double mutations were seen in 15 cases and six cases harbored three and one case four gene mutations, respectively. Interestingly, all patients with ID3 mutations harbored additional mutations. In detail, 27 ID3 mutations were observed in 14/60 (40.0%) cases. These mutations included 17 missense, 6 nonsense, 1 deletion, 2 splice-site and one frame-shift events. Eight of the 14 ID3 mutated patients harbored two or more concomitant ID3 mutations. The mutations clustered around hotspot codons p.Leu64Phe (9/27) or p.Gln81* (4/27). Of the double-mutated cases 7/8 patients harbored at least one mutation in the hotspot region. Of note, 23/27 mutations were located within the helix-loop-helix domain. MYC, the predominantly recognized oncogene in BL, was mutated in 26/60 (43.3%) of cases and in total 50 distinct mutations were discovered, including 46 missense, 2 deletions, one splice-site, and one indel events. A high number of 9 (34.6%) patients harbored two or more MYC mutations. The mutations clustered around a recurrent codon p.His374 (4/60). TCF3 mutations were detected in 2/60 (3.3%) of cases, both of them also mutated in MYC and TP53. Finally, 33 TP53 mutations were found in 27/60 (45.0%) patients. Six patients harbored two mutations (with quite different clone sizes in two of the six cases). Furthermore, we observed a positive correlation for ID3 and MYC mutations (11/14 (78.6%) ID3 mutated cases harbored MYC mutations vs. 15/46 (32.6%); p=0.004). Further, we studied correlations of the type of lymphoma (single-hit vs. multiple-hit) and found ID3 mutations positively correlated with single-hit lymphoma (13/36 (36.1%) vs. 1/24 (4.2%) cases within multiple-hit patients; p=0.005). Next, we studied correlations with BCL2 rearrangements, which were present in 20/60 (33.3%) cases. Cases with BCL2 rearrangements were associated with significantly lower mutation frequencies in TP53 (5/20 (25.0%) vs. 22/40 (55.0%), p=0.032) and ID3 (1/20 (5.0%) vs. 13/40 (32.5%), p=0.023). Finally, within our cohort of 60 lymphomas, 11 (18.3%) patients presented as single-hit lymphoma and without any of the mentioned molecular mutations. ConclusionIn this independent validation study we can confirm the high frequency of mutations in ID3, MYC, TCF3 and TP53 in adult BL. As our understanding of the genetic landscape is further increased novel therapeutic approaches seem possible in this disease. Disclosures:Kohlmann:MLL Munich Leukemia Laboratory: Employment. Roller:MLL Munich Leukemia Laboratory: Employment. Kienast:MLL Munich Leukemia Laboratory: Employment. Denzel:MLL Munich Leukemia Laboratory: Employment. Grossmann:MLL Munich Leukemia Laboratory: Employment. Nadarajah:MLL Munich Leukemia Laboratory: Employment. Alpermann:MLL Munich Leukemia Laboratory: Employment. Kern:MLL Munich Leukemia Laboratory: Employment, Equity Ownership. Schnittger:MLL Munich Leukemia Laboratory: Employment, Equity Ownership. Haferlach:MLL Munich Leukemia Laboratory: Employment, Equity Ownership. Haferlach:MLL Munich Leukemia Laboratory: Employment, Equity Ownership.

SHIFT: Server for hidden stops analysis in frame-shifted translation

BackgroundFrameshift is one of the three classes of recoding. Frame-shifts lead to waste of energy, resources and activity of the biosynthetic machinery. In addition, some peptides synthesized after frame-shifts are probably cytotoxic which serve as plausible cause for innumerable number of diseases and disorders such as muscular dystrophies, lysosomal storage disorders, and cancer. Hidden stop codons occur naturally in coding sequences among all organisms. These codons are associated with the early termination of translation for incorrect reading frame selection and help to reduce the metabolic cost related to the frameshift events. Researchers have identified several consequences of hidden stop codons and their association with myriad disorders. However the wealth of information available is speckled and not effortlessly acquiescent to data-mining. To reduce this gap, this work describes an algorithmic web based tool to study hidden stops in frameshifted translation for all the lineages through respective genetic code systems.FindingsThis paper describes SHIFT, an algorithmic web application tool that provides a user-friendly interface for identifying and analyzing hidden stops in frameshifted translation of genomic sequences for all available genetic code systems. We have calculated the correlation between codon usage frequencies and the plausible contribution of codons towards hidden stops in an off-frame context. Markovian chains of various order have been used to model hidden stops in frameshifted peptides and their evolutionary association with naturally occurring hidden stops. In order to obtain reliable and persuasive estimates for the naturally occurring and predicted hidden stops statistical measures have been implemented.ConclusionsThis paper presented SHIFT, an algorithmic tool that allows user-friendly exploration, analysis, and visualization of hidden stop codons in frameshifted translations. It is expected that this web based tool would serve as a useful complement for analyzing hidden stop codons in all available genetic code systems. SHIFT is freely available for academic and research purpose at http://www.nuccore.org/shift/.

Genome-wide ribosome profiling reveals complex translational regulation in response to oxidative stress

Information on unique and coordinated regulation of transcription and translation in response to stress is central to the understanding of cellular homeostasis. Here we used ribosome profiling coupled with next-generation sequencing to examine the interplay between transcription and translation under conditions of hydrogen peroxide treatment in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Hydrogen peroxide treatment led to a massive and rapid increase in ribosome occupancy of short upstream ORFs, including those with non-AUG translational starts, and of the N-terminal regions of ORFs that preceded the transcriptional response. In addition, this treatment induced the synthesis of N-terminally extended proteins and elevated stop codon read-through and frameshift events. It also increased ribosome occupancy at the beginning of ORFs and potentially the duration of the elongation step. We identified proteins whose synthesis was regulated rapidly by hydrogen peroxide posttranscriptionally; however, for the majority of genes increased protein synthesis followed transcriptional regulation. These data define the landscape of genome-wide regulation of translation in response to hydrogen peroxide and suggest that potentiation (coregulation of the transcript level and translation) is a feature of oxidative stress.

Escherichia coli Frameshift Mutation Rate Depends on the Chromosomal Context but Not on the GATC Content Near the Mutation Site

Different studies have suggested that mutation rate varies at different positions in the genome. In this work we analyzed if the chromosomal context and/or the presence of GATC sites can affect the frameshift mutation rate in the Escherichia coli genome. We show that in a mismatch repair deficient background, a condition where the mutation rate reflects the fidelity of the DNA polymerization process, the frameshift mutation rate could vary up to four times among different chromosomal contexts. Furthermore, the mismatch repair efficiency could vary up to eight times when compared at different chromosomal locations, indicating that detection and/or repair of frameshift events also depends on the chromosomal context. Also, GATC sequences have been proved to be essential for the correct functioning of the E. coli mismatch repair system. Using bacteriophage heteroduplexes molecules it has been shown that GATC influence the mismatch repair efficiency in a distance- and number-dependent manner, being almost nonfunctional when GATC sequences are located at 1 kb or more from the mutation site. Interestingly, we found that in E. coli genomic DNA the mismatch repair system can efficiently function even if the nearest GATC sequence is located more than 2 kb away from the mutation site. The results presented in this work show that even though frameshift mutations can be efficiently generated and/or repaired anywhere in the genome, these processes can be modulated by the chromosomal context that surrounds the mutation site.

The G-Patch Domain of Mason-Pfizer Monkey Virus Is a Part of Reverse Transcriptase

Mason-Pfizer monkey virus (M-PMV), like some other betaretroviruses, encodes a G-patch domain (GPD). This glycine-rich domain, which has been predicted to be an RNA binding module, is invariably localized at the 3' end of the pro gene upstream of the pro-pol ribosomal frameshift sequence of genomic RNAs of betaretroviruses. Following two ribosomal frameshift events and the translation of viral mRNA, the GPD is present in both Gag-Pro and Gag-Pro-Pol polyproteins. During the maturation of the Gag-Pro polyprotein, the GPD transiently remains a C-terminal part of the protease (PR), from which it is then detached by PR itself. The destiny of the Gag-Pro-Pol-encoded GPD remains to be determined. The function of the GPD in the retroviral life cycle is unknown. To elucidate the role of the GPD in the M-PMV replication cycle, alanine-scanning mutational analysis of its most highly conserved residues was performed. A series of individual mutations as well as the deletion of the entire GPD had no effect on M-PMV assembly, polyprotein processing, and RNA incorporation. However, a reduction of the reverse transcriptase (RT) activity, resulting in a drop in M-PMV infectivity, was determined for all GPD mutants. Immunoprecipitation experiments suggested that the GPD is a part of RT and participates in its function. These data indicate that the M-PMV GPD functions as a part of reverse transcriptase rather than protease.