Nucleic acid amplification is the basis for many molecular diagnostic assays. In these cases, the amplification product must be detected and analyzed, typically requiring extended workflow time, ...sophisticated equipment, or both. Here we present a novel method of amplification detection that harnesses the pH change resulting from amplification reactions performed with minimal buffering capacity. In loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) reactions, we achieved rapid (<30 min) and sensitive (<10 copies) visual detection using pH-sensitive dyes. Additionally, the detection can be performed in real time, enabling high-throughput or quantitative applications. We also demonstrate this visual detection for another isothermal amplification method (strand-displacement amplification), PCR, and reverse transcription LAMP (RT-LAMP) detection of RNA. The colorimetric detection of amplification presented here represents a generally applicable approach for visual detection of nucleic acid amplification, enabling molecular diagnostic tests to be analyzed immediately without the need for specialized and expensive instrumentation.
The predominant methodology for DNA methylation analysis relies on the chemical deamination by sodium bisulfite of unmodified cytosine to uracil to permit the differential readout of methylated ...cytosines. Bisulfite treatment damages the DNA, leading to fragmentation and loss of long-range methylation information. To overcome this limitation of bisulfite-treated DNA, we applied a new enzymatic deamination approach, termed enzymatic methyl-seq (EM-seq), to long-range sequencing technologies. Our methodology, named long-read enzymatic modification sequencing (LR-EM-seq), preserves the integrity of DNA, allowing long-range methylation profiling of 5-methylcytosine (5mC) and 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) over multikilobase length of genomic DNA. When applied to known differentially methylated regions (DMRs), LR-EM-seq achieves phasing of >5 kb, resulting in broader and better defined DMRs compared with that previously reported. This result showed the importance of phasing methylation for biologically relevant questions and the applicability of LR-EM-seq for long-range epigenetic analysis at single-molecule and single-nucleotide resolution.
Mutations in somatic cells generate a heterogeneous genomic population and may result in serious medical conditions. Although cancer is typically associated with somatic variations, advances in DNA ...sequencing indicate that cell-specific variants affect a number of phenotypes and pathologies. Here, we show that mutagenic damage accounts for the majority of the erroneous identification of variants with low to moderate (1 to 5%) frequency. More important, we found signatures of damage in most sequencing data sets in widely used resources, including the 1000 Genomes Project and The Cancer Genome Atlas, establishing damage as a pervasive cause of sequencing errors. The extent of this damage directly confounds the determination of somatic variants in these data sets.
Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) is a rapid and reliable sequence-specific isothermal nucleic acid amplification technique. To date, all reported real-time detection methods for LAMP ...have been restricted to single targets, limiting the utility of this technique. Here, we adapted standard LAMP primers to contain a quencher-fluorophore duplex region that upon strand separation results in a gain of fluorescent signal. This approach permitted the real-time detection of 1-4 target sequences in a single LAMP reaction tube utilizing a standard real-time fluorimeter. The methodology was highly reproducible and sensitive, detecting below 100 copies of human genomic DNA. It was also robust, with a 7-order of magnitude dynamic range of detectable targets. Furthermore, using a new strand-displacing DNA polymerase or its warm-start version,
2.0 or
2.0 WarmStart DNA polymerases, resulted in 50% faster amplification signals than wild-type
DNA polymerase, large fragment in this new multiplex LAMP procedure. The coupling of this new multiplex technique with next generation isothermal DNA polymerases should increase the utility of the LAMP method for molecular diagnostics.
Like membranous organelles, large-scale coassembly of macromolecules can organize functions in cells. Ribonucleoproteins (RNPs) can form liquid or solid aggregates, but control and consequences of ...these RNP states in living, developing tissue are poorly understood. Here, we show that regulated RNP factor interactions drive transitions among diffuse, semiliquid, or solid states to modulate RNP sorting and exchange in the Caenorhabditis elegans oocyte cytoplasm. Translation repressors induce an intrinsic capacity of RNP components to coassemble into either large semiliquids or solid lattices, whereas a conserved RNA helicase prevents polymerization into nondynamic solids. Developmental cues dramatically alter both fluidity and sorting within large RNP assemblies, inducing a transition from RNP segregation in quiescent oocytes to dynamic exchange in the early embryo. Therefore, large-scale organization of gene expression extends to the cytoplasm, where regulation of supramolecular states imparts specific patterns of RNP dynamics.
•Regulated RNP coassembly mediates transitions to and from semiliquids•Repressors induce coassembly competence of RNP factors•A conserved RNA helicase prevents polymerization to nondynamic solids•Developmental changes in supramolecular states modulate RNP sorting and exchange
Ribonucleoproteins (RNPs) can form large coassemblies. Shedding light on how and why, Hubstenberger et al. show in Caenorhabditis elegans oocytes that mRNA control pathways regulate transitions among diffuse, semiliquid, and solid RNP states. Changes in fluidity and mixing specificity in RNP assemblies modulate RNP sorting and exchange during development.
Synthetic biology relies on the manufacture of large and complex DNA constructs from libraries of genetic parts. Golden Gate and other Type IIS restriction enzyme-dependent DNA assembly methods ...enable rapid construction of genes and operons through one-pot, multifragment assembly, with the ordering of parts determined by the ligation of Watson–Crick base-paired overhangs. However, ligation of mismatched overhangs leads to erroneous assembly, and low-efficiency Watson Crick pairings can lead to truncated assemblies. Using sets of empirically vetted, high-accuracy junction pairs avoids this issue but limits the number of parts that can be joined in a single reaction. Here, we report the use of comprehensive end-joining ligation fidelity and bias data to predict high accuracy junction sets for Golden Gate assembly. The ligation profile accurately predicted junction fidelity in ten-fragment Golden Gate assembly reactions and enabled accurate and efficient assembly of a lac cassette from up to 24-fragments in a single reaction.
Prokaryotic argonautes are a unique class of nucleic acid-guided endonucleases putatively involved in cellular defense against foreign genetic elements. While their eukaryotic homologs and Cas ...protein counterparts require single-stranded RNAs as guides, some prokaryotic argonautes are able to utilize short single-stranded DNAs as guides for sequence-specific endonuclease activity. Many complications currently prevent the use of prokaryotic argonautes for in vivo gene-editing applications; however, they do exhibit potential as a new class of in vitro molecular tools if certain challenges can be overcome, specifically the limitations on substrate accessibility which leads to unequal levels of activity across a broad palate of substrates and the inability to act on double-stranded DNA substrates. Here we demonstrate the use of accessory factors, including thermostable single-stranded DNA binding proteins and UvrD-like helicase, in conjunction with prokaryotic argonautes to significantly improve enzymatic activity and enable functionality with a broader range of substrates, including linear double-stranded DNA substrates. We also demonstrate the use of Thermus thermophilus argonaute with accessory factors as a programmable restriction enzyme to generate long, unique single-stranded overhangs from linear double-stranded substrates compatible with downstream ligation.
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Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Accurate detection of filarial parasites in humans is essential for the implementation and evaluation of mass drug administration programs to control onchocerciasis and lymphatic filariasis. ...Determining the infection levels in vector populations is also important for assessing transmission, deciding when drug treatments may be terminated and for monitoring recrudescence. Immunological methods to detect infection in humans are available, however, cross-reactivity issues have been reported. Nucleic acid-based molecular assays offer high levels of specificity and sensitivity, and can be used to detect infection in both humans and vectors. In this study we developed loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) tests to detect three different filarial DNAs in human and insect samples using pH sensitive dyes for enhanced visual detection of amplification. Furthermore, reactions were performed in a portable, non-instrumented nucleic acid amplification (NINA) device that provides a stable heat source for LAMP. The efficacy of several strand displacing DNA polymerases were evaluated in combination with neutral red or phenol red dyes. Colorimetric NINA-LAMP assays targeting Brugia Hha I repeat, Onchocerca volvulus GST1a and Wuchereria bancrofti LDR each exhibit species-specificity and are also highly sensitive, detecting DNA equivalent to 1/10-1/5000th of one microfilaria. Reaction times varied depending on whether a single copy gene (70 minutes, O. volvulus) or repetitive DNA (40 min, B. malayi and W. bancrofti) was employed as a biomarker. The NINA heater can be used to detect multiple infections simultaneously. The accuracy, simplicity and versatility of the technology suggests that colorimetric NINA-LAMP assays are ideally suited for monitoring the success of filariasis control programs.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Bisulfite sequencing detects 5mC and 5hmC at single-base resolution. However, bisulfite treatment damages DNA, which results in fragmentation, DNA loss, and biased sequencing data. To overcome these ...problems, enzymatic methyl-seq (EM-seq) was developed. This method detects 5mC and 5hmC using two sets of enzymatic reactions. In the first reaction, TET2 and T4-BGT convert 5mC and 5hmC into products that cannot be deaminated by APOBEC3A. In the second reaction, APOBEC3A deaminates unmodified cytosines by converting them to uracils. Therefore, these three enzymes enable the identification of 5mC and 5hmC. EM-seq libraries were compared with bisulfite-converted DNA, and each library type was ligated to Illumina adaptors before conversion. Libraries were made using NA12878 genomic DNA, cell-free DNA, and FFPE DNA over a range of DNA inputs. The 5mC and 5hmC detected in EM-seq libraries were similar to those of bisulfite libraries. However, libraries made using EM-seq outperformed bisulfite-converted libraries in all specific measures examined (coverage, duplication, sensitivity, etc.). EM-seq libraries displayed even GC distribution, better correlations across DNA inputs, increased numbers of CpGs within genomic features, and accuracy of cytosine methylation calls. EM-seq was effective using as little as 100 pg of DNA, and these libraries maintained the described advantages over bisulfite sequencing. EM-seq library construction, using challenging samples and lower DNA inputs, opens new avenues for research and clinical applications.
DNA ligases catalyze the repair of phosphate backbone breaks in DNA, acting with highest activity on breaks in one strand of duplex DNA. Some DNA ligases have also been observed to ligate two DNA ...fragments with short complementary overhangs or blunt-ended termini. In this study, several wild-type DNA ligases (phage T3, T4, and T7 DNA ligases, Paramecium bursaria chlorella virus 1 (PBCV1) DNA ligase, human DNA ligase 3, and Escherichia coli DNA ligase) were tested for their ability to ligate DNA fragments with several difficult to ligate end structures (blunt-ended termini, 3'- and 5'- single base overhangs, and 5'-two base overhangs). This analysis revealed that T4 DNA ligase, the most common enzyme utilized for in vitro ligation, had its greatest activity on blunt- and 2-base overhangs, and poorest on 5'-single base overhangs. Other ligases had different substrate specificity: T3 DNA ligase ligated only blunt ends well; PBCV1 DNA ligase joined 3'-single base overhangs and 2-base overhangs effectively with little blunt or 5'- single base overhang activity; and human ligase 3 had highest activity on blunt ends and 5'-single base overhangs. There is no correlation of activity among ligases on blunt DNA ends with their activity on single base overhangs. In addition, DNA binding domains (Sso7d, hLig3 zinc finger, and T4 DNA ligase N-terminal domain) were fused to PBCV1 DNA ligase to explore whether modified binding to DNA would lead to greater activity on these difficult to ligate substrates. These engineered ligases showed both an increased binding affinity for DNA and increased activity, but did not alter the relative substrate preferences of PBCV1 DNA ligase, indicating active site structure plays a role in determining substrate preference.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
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