Non-thalamic origin of zebrafish sensory nuclei implies convergent evolution of visual pathways in amniotes and teleosts.

Ascending visual projections similar to the mammalian thalamocortical pathway are found in a wide range of vertebrate species, but their homology is debated. To get better insights into their evolutionary origin, we examined the developmental origin of a thalamic-like sensory structure of teleosts, the preglomerular complex (PG), focusing on the visual projection neurons. Similarly to the tectofugal thalamic nuclei in amniotes, the lateral nucleus of PG receives tectal information and projects to the pallium.

More than 10% of yeast genes are related to genome stability and influence cellular senescence via rDNA maintenance.

Genome instability triggers cellular senescence and is a common cause of cancer. The ribosomal RNA genes (rDNA), due to their repetitive structure, form a fragile site with frequent rearrangements. To identify eukaryotic factors that connect reduced genome stability to senescence we screened 4,876 strains of a Saccharomyces cerevisiae deletion library for aberrant rDNA and found 708 genes that contribute to its upkeep.

Cellular senescence in yeast is regulated by rDNA noncoding transcription.

Genomic instability is a conserved factor in lifespan reduction, although the molecular mechanism is not known. Studies in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae over the past 20 years have found a connection between the ribosomal RNA gene cluster (rDNA) and lifespan. The highly repetitive rDNA exhibits genomic instability, and the antiaging histone deacetylase gene SIR2 regulates this instability.

Rtt109 prevents hyper-amplification of ribosomal RNA genes through histone modification in budding yeast.

The genes encoding ribosomal RNA are the most abundant in the eukaryotic genome. They reside in tandem repetitive clusters, in some cases totaling hundreds of copies. Due to their repetitive structure, ribosomal RNA genes (rDNA) are easily lost by recombination events within the repeated cluster.

The effect of replication initiation on gene amplification in the rDNA and its relationship to aging.

In eukaryotes, the ribosomal DNA (rDNA) consists of long tandem repeat arrays. These repeated genes are unstable because homologous recombination between them results in copy number loss. To maintain high copy numbers, yeast has an amplification system that works through a pathway involving the replication fork barrier site and unequal sister chromatid recombination.

A complete set of Escherichia coli open reading frames in mobile plasmids facilitating genetic studies.

To facilitate genetic studies of Escherichia coli, we constructed a complete set of mobile plasmid clones of intact open reading frames (ORFs). Their expression is strictly controlled by Ptac / lacI(q). The plasmids carrying each ORF were introduced into an F+ recA strain and stored in 96-well microtiter plates.