Cell-based RNAi

Arunachalam Vinayagam, Meghana M Kulkarni, Richelle Sopko, Xiaoyun Sun, Yanhui Hu, Ankita Nand, Christians Villalta, Ahmadali Moghimi, Xuemei Yang, Stephanie E Mohr, Pengyu Hong, John M Asara, and Norbert Perrimon. 9/13/2016. “An Integrative Analysis of the InR/PI3K/Akt Network Identifies the Dynamic Response to Insulin Signaling.” Cell Reports, 16, 11, Pp. 3062-3074.Abstract

Insulin regulates an essential conserved signaling pathway affecting growth, proliferation, and meta- bolism. To expand our understanding of the insulin pathway, we combine biochemical, genetic, and computational approaches to build a comprehensive Drosophila InR/PI3K/Akt network. First, we map the dynamic protein-protein interaction network sur- rounding the insulin core pathway using bait-prey interactions connecting 566 proteins. Combining RNAi screening and phospho-specific antibodies, we find that 47% of interacting proteins affect pathway activity, and, using quantitative phospho- proteomics, we demonstrate that $10% of interact- ing proteins are regulated by insulin stimulation at the level of phosphorylation. Next, we integrate these orthogonal datasets to characterize the structure and dynamics of the insulin network at the level of protein complexes and validate our method by iden- tifying regulatory roles for the Protein Phosphatase 2A (PP2A) and Reptin-Pontin chromatin-remodeling complexes as negative and positive regulators of ribosome biogenesis, respectively. Altogether, our study represents a comprehensive resource for the study of the evolutionary conserved insulin network. 

Joel M Swenson, Serafin U Colmenares, Amy R Strom, Sylvain V Costes, and Gary H Karpen. 2016. “The composition and organization of Drosophila heterochromatin are heterogeneous and dynamic.” Elife, 5.Abstract

Heterochromatin is enriched for specific epigenetic factors including Heterochromatin Protein 1a (HP1a), and is essential for many organismal functions. To elucidate heterochromatin organization and regulation, we purified Drosophila melanogaster HP1a interactors, and performed a genome-wide RNAi screen to identify genes that impact HP1a levels or localization. The majority of the over four hundred putative HP1a interactors and regulators identified were previously unknown. We found that 13 of 16 tested candidates (83%) are required for gene silencing, providing a substantial increase in the number of identified components that impact heterochromatin properties. Surprisingly, image analysis revealed that although some HP1a interactors and regulators are broadly distributed within the heterochromatin domain, most localize to discrete subdomains that display dynamic localization patterns during the cell cycle. We conclude that heterochromatin composition and architecture is more spatially complex and dynamic than previously suggested, and propose that a network of subdomains regulates diverse heterochromatin functions.

Screenshot of the Online Tools Overview page

Is it a hit? On mining our data sets.

July 22, 2016

The DRSC/TRiP-FGR's FlyRNAi database stores results from the many cell-based screens done since 2003 using DRSC Drosophila RNAi libraries. It also stores information about knockdown and phenotypes resulting from specific combinations of in vivo RNAi fly stocks (including our TRiP stocks and also VDRC and NIG-Japan stocks). The in vivo data includes directly deposited data and results curated by FlyBase from the literature.

Even if you are not interested to do a fly RNAi screen, these data might help you. For...

Read more about Is it a hit? On mining our data sets.
2016 Sep 23

Boston Area Drosophila Meeting

1:00pm to 4:30pm

Location: 

University of Massachusetts Boston

The DRSC-Functional Genomics Resources (formerly DRSC & TRiP) will be participating in the Boston Area Drosophila Meeting, which was organized by Alexey Verakas of UMass Boston and Jim Walker of Harvard Medical School. Hear about what's new in technologies and online tools at this regional meeting of experts in Drosophila research.

Search results for the term oogenesis at the Drosophila protocols portal

Beta-testing a "Drosophila Protocols Portal"

June 16, 2016

The DRSC-FGR has developed a beta version of a database and online search for protocols, the Drosophila Protocols Portal, relevant to Drosophila research. The goal is to provide a central portal for protocols distributed across the web. We collected protocols from protocol databases, lab websites, YouTube, Drosophila Information Service (DIS), and relevant journals. You can view the results by topic or search for specific terms.

Longer-term goals...

Read more about Beta-testing a "Drosophila Protocols Portal"
2016 Sep 28

Functional genomics techniques in Drosophila and their potential application in non-model insects

11:45am to 12:00pm

Location: 

Orlando, FL

DRSC-FGR Director S. Mohr will be presenting in the symposium Insect Genetic Technologies: State of the Art and Promise for the Future at the International Congress of Entomology (ICE 2016). Come hear what is possible in Drosophila that might be applied to other insect species. Wednesday, September 28, 2016 at 11:45 am (symposium from 9:30 - 12:30).

Ian T Flockhart, Matthew Booker, Yanhui Hu, Benjamin McElvany, Quentin Gilly, Bernard Mathey-Prevot, Norbert Perrimon, and Stephanie E Mohr. 2012. “FlyRNAi.org--the database of the Drosophila RNAi screening center: 2012 update.” Nucleic Acids Res, 40, Database issue, Pp. D715-9.Abstract

FlyRNAi (http://www.flyrnai.org), the database and website of the Drosophila RNAi Screening Center (DRSC) at Harvard Medical School, serves a dual role, tracking both production of reagents for RNA interference (RNAi) screening in Drosophila cells and RNAi screen results. The database and website is used as a platform for community availability of protocols, tools, and other resources useful to researchers planning, conducting, analyzing or interpreting the results of Drosophila RNAi screens. Based on our own experience and user feedback, we have made several changes. Specifically, we have restructured the database to accommodate new types of reagents; added information about new RNAi libraries and other reagents; updated the user interface and website; and added new tools of use to the Drosophila community and others. Overall, the result is a more useful, flexible and comprehensive website and database.

Stephanie E Mohr, Yanhui Hu, Kirstin Rudd, Michael Buckner, Quentin Gilly, Blake Foster, Katarzyna Sierzputowska, Aram Comjean, Bing Ye, and Norbert Perrimon. 2015. “Reagent and Data Resources for Investigation of RNA Binding Protein Functions in Drosophila melanogaster Cultured Cells.” G3 (Bethesda), 5, 9, Pp. 1919-24.Abstract

RNA binding proteins (RBPs) are involved in many cellular functions. To facilitate functional characterization of RBPs, we generated an RNA interference (RNAi) library for Drosophila cell-based screens comprising reagents targeting known or putative RBPs. To test the quality of the library and provide a baseline analysis of the effects of the RNAi reagents on viability, we screened the library using a total ATP assay and high-throughput imaging in Drosophila S2R+ cultured cells. The results are consistent with production of a high-quality library that will be useful for functional genomics studies using other assays. Altogether, we provide resources in the form of an initial curated list of Drosophila RBPs; an RNAi screening library we expect to be used with additional assays that address more specific biological questions; and total ATP and image data useful for comparison of those additional assay results with fundamental information such as effects of a given reagent in the library on cell viability. Importantly, we make the baseline data, including more than 200,000 images, easily accessible online.

Yousang Gwack, Sonia Sharma, Julie Nardone, Bogdan Tanasa, Alina Iuga, Sonal Srikanth, Heidi Okamura, Diana Bolton, Stefan Feske, Patrick G Hogan, and Anjana Rao. 2006. “A genome-wide Drosophila RNAi screen identifies DYRK-family kinases as regulators of NFAT.” Nature, 441, 7093, Pp. 646-50.Abstract

Precise regulation of the NFAT (nuclear factor of activated T cells) family of transcription factors (NFAT1-4) is essential for vertebrate development and function. In resting cells, NFAT proteins are heavily phosphorylated and reside in the cytoplasm; in cells exposed to stimuli that raise intracellular free Ca2+ levels, they are dephosphorylated by the calmodulin-dependent phosphatase calcineurin and translocate to the nucleus. NFAT dephosphorylation by calcineurin is countered by distinct NFAT kinases, among them casein kinase 1 (CK1) and glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK3). Here we have used a genome-wide RNA interference (RNAi) screen in Drosophila to identify additional regulators of the signalling pathway leading from Ca2+-calcineurin to NFAT. This screen was successful because the pathways regulating NFAT subcellular localization (Ca2+ influx, Ca2+-calmodulin-calcineurin signalling and NFAT kinases) are conserved across species, even though Ca2+-regulated NFAT proteins are not themselves represented in invertebrates. Using the screen, we have identified DYRKs (dual-specificity tyrosine-phosphorylation regulated kinases) as novel regulators of NFAT. DYRK1A and DYRK2 counter calcineurin-mediated dephosphorylation of NFAT1 by directly phosphorylating the conserved serine-proline repeat 3 (SP-3) motif of the NFAT regulatory domain, thus priming further phosphorylation of the SP-2 and serine-rich region 1 (SRR-1) motifs by GSK3 and CK1, respectively. Thus, genetic screening in Drosophila can be successfully applied to cross evolutionary boundaries and identify new regulators of a transcription factor that is expressed only in vertebrates.

Caroline H Yi, Dodzie K Sogah, Michael Boyce, Alexei Degterev, Dana E Christofferson, and Junying Yuan. 2007. “A genome-wide RNAi screen reveals multiple regulators of caspase activation.” J Cell Biol, 179, 4, Pp. 619-26.Abstract

Apoptosis is an evolutionally conserved cellular suicide mechanism that can be activated in response to a variety of stressful stimuli. Increasing evidence suggests that apoptotic regulation relies on specialized cell death signaling pathways and also integrates diverse signals from additional regulatory circuits, including those of cellular homeostasis. We present a genome-wide RNA interference screen to systematically identify regulators of apoptosis induced by DNA damage in Drosophila melanogaster cells. We identify 47 double- stranded RNA that target a functionally diverse set of genes, including several with a known function in promoting cell death. Further characterization uncovers 10 genes that influence caspase activation upon the removal of Drosophila inhibitor of apoptosis 1. This set includes the Drosophila initiator caspase Dronc and, surprisingly, several metabolic regulators, a candidate tumor suppressor, Charlatan, and an N-acetyltransferase, ARD1. Importantly, several of these genes show functional conservation in regulating apoptosis in mammalian cells. Our data suggest a previously unappreciated fundamental connection between various cellular processes and caspase-dependent cell death.

David Sims, Peter Duchek, and Buzz Baum. 2009. “PDGF/VEGF signaling controls cell size in Drosophila.” Genome Biol, 10, 2, Pp. R20.Abstract

BACKGROUND: In multicellular animals, cell size is controlled by a limited set of conserved intracellular signaling pathways, which when deregulated contribute to tumorigenesis by enabling cells to grow outside their usual niche. To delineate the pathways controlling this process, we screened a genome-scale, image-based Drosophila RNA interference dataset for double-stranded RNAs that reduce the average size of adherent S2R+ cells. RESULTS: Automated analysis of images from this RNA interference screen identified the receptor tyrosine kinase Pvr, Ras pathway components and several novel genes as regulators of cell size. Significantly, Pvr/Ras signaling also affected the size of other Drosophila cell lines and of larval hemocytes. A detailed genetic analysis of this growth signaling pathway revealed a role for redundant secreted ligands, Pvf2 and Pvf3, in the establishment of an autocrine growth signaling loop. Downstream of Ras1, growth signaling was found to depend on parallel mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and phospho-inositide-3-kinase (PI3K) signaling modules, as well as the Tor pathway. CONCLUSIONS: This automated genome-wide screen identifies autocrine Pvf/Pvr signaling, upstream of Ras, MAPK and PI3K, as rate-limiting for the growth of immortalized fly cells in culture. Since, Pvf2/3 and Pvr show mutually exclusive in vivo patterns of gene expression, these data suggest that co-expression of this receptor-ligand pair plays a key role in driving cell autonomous growth during the establishment of Drosophila cell lines, as has been suggested to occur during tumor development.

Philippos Mourikis, Robert J Lake, Christopher B Firnhaber, and Brian S DeDecker. 2010. “Modifiers of notch transcriptional activity identified by genome-wide RNAi.” BMC Dev Biol, 10, Pp. 107.Abstract

BACKGROUND: The Notch signaling pathway regulates a diverse array of developmental processes, and aberrant Notch signaling can lead to diseases, including cancer. To obtain a more comprehensive understanding of the genetic network that integrates into Notch signaling, we performed a genome-wide RNAi screen in Drosophila cell culture to identify genes that modify Notch-dependent transcription. RESULTS: Employing complementary data analyses, we found 399 putative modifiers: 189 promoting and 210 antagonizing Notch activated transcription. These modifiers included several known Notch interactors, validating the robustness of the assay. Many novel modifiers were also identified, covering a range of cellular localizations from the extracellular matrix to the nucleus, as well as a large number of proteins with unknown function. Chromatin-modifying proteins represent a major class of genes identified, including histone deacetylase and demethylase complex components and other chromatin modifying, remodeling and replacement factors. A protein-protein interaction map of the Notch-dependent transcription modifiers revealed that a large number of the identified proteins interact physically with these core chromatin components. CONCLUSIONS: The genome-wide RNAi screen identified many genes that can modulate Notch transcriptional output. A protein interaction map of the identified genes highlighted a network of chromatin-modifying enzymes and remodelers that regulate Notch transcription. Our results open new avenues to explore the mechanisms of Notch signal regulation and the integration of this pathway into diverse cellular processes.

Marcelo Perez-Pepe, Victoria Slomiansky, Mariela Loschi, Luciana Luchelli, Maximiliano Neme, María Gabriela Thomas, and Graciela Lidia Boccaccio. 2012. “BUHO: a MATLAB script for the study of stress granules and processing bodies by high-throughput image analysis.” PLoS One, 7, 12, Pp. e51495.Abstract

The spontaneous and reversible formation of foci and filaments that contain proteins involved in different metabolic processes is common in both the nucleus and the cytoplasm. Stress granules (SGs) and processing bodies (PBs) belong to a novel family of cellular structures collectively known as mRNA silencing foci that harbour repressed mRNAs and their associated proteins. SGs and PBs are highly dynamic and they form upon stress and dissolve thus releasing the repressed mRNAs according to changes in cell physiology. In addition, aggregates containing abnormal proteins are frequent in neurodegenerative disorders. In spite of the growing relevance of these supramolecular aggregates to diverse cellular functions a reliable automated tool for their systematic analysis is lacking. Here we report a MATLAB Script termed BUHO for the high-throughput image analysis of cellular foci. We used BUHO to assess the number, size and distribution of distinct objects with minimal deviation from manually obtained parameters. BUHO successfully addressed the induction of both SGs and PBs in mammalian and insect cells exposed to different stress stimuli. We also used BUHO to assess the dynamics of specific mRNA-silencing foci termed Smaug 1 foci (S-foci) in primary neurons upon synaptic stimulation. Finally, we used BUHO to analyze the role of candidate genes on SG formation in an RNAi-based experiment. We found that FAK56D, GCN2 and PP1 govern SG formation. The role of PP1 is conserved in mammalian cells as judged by the effect of the PP1 inhibitor salubrinal, and involves dephosphorylation of the translation factor eIF2α. All these experiments were analyzed manually and by BUHO and the results differed in less than 5% of the average value. The automated analysis by this user-friendly method will allow high-throughput image processing in short times by providing a robust, flexible and reliable alternative to the laborious and sometimes unfeasible visual scrutiny.

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