A catalog of transcription factor (TF) binding sites in the genome is critical for deciphering regulatory relationships. Here, we present the culmination of the efforts of the modENCODE (model organism Encyclopedia of DNA Elements) and modERN (model organism Encyclopedia of Regulatory Networks) consortia to systematically assay TF binding events in vivo in two major model organisms, (fly) and (worm). These data sets comprise 605 TFs identifying 3.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe RNA-seq Browser is an open-source Shiny web app that enables on-demand visualization and quantification of bulk RNA-sequencing data for five species: , , , , and . The app is designed to allow researchers without previous coding experience to interactively explore publicly available RNA-sequencing data. Key app features include the ability to plot gene expression across life stages for user-specified gene sets, and modules for performing differential gene expression analyses.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA catalog of transcription factor (TF) binding sites in the genome is critical for deciphering regulatory relationships. Here we present the culmination of the modERN (model organism Encyclopedia of Regulatory Networks) consortium that systematically assayed TF binding events in vivo in two major model organisms, (fly) and (worm). We describe key features of these datasets, comprising 604 TFs identifying 3.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe role of structurally dynamic genomic regions in speciation is poorly understood due to challenges inherent in diploid genome assembly. Here we reconstructed the evolutionary dynamics of structural variation in five cat species by phasing the genomes of three interspecies F1 hybrids to generate near-gapless single-haplotype assemblies. We discerned that cat genomes have a paucity of segmental duplications relative to great apes, explaining their remarkable karyotypic stability.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGenome assembly can be challenging for species that are characterized by high amounts of polymorphism, heterozygosity, and large effective population sizes. High levels of heterozygosity can result in genome mis-assemblies and a larger than expected genome size due to the haplotig versions of a single locus being assembled as separate loci. Here, we describe the first chromosome-level genome for the eastern oyster, Crassostrea virginica.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBecause of diverged adaptative phenotypes, fish species of the genus have contributed to a wide range of research for a century. Existing genome assemblies are not at the chromosomal level and are prone to sequence gaps, thus hindering advancement of the intra- and inter-species differences for evolutionary, comparative, and translational biomedical studies. Herein, we assembled high-quality chromosome-level genome assemblies for three distantly related species, namely, , , and Our overall goal is to precisely assess microevolutionary processes in the clade to ascertain molecular events that led to the divergence of the species and to progress understanding of genetic incompatibility to disease.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe rhesus macaque () is the most widely studied nonhuman primate (NHP) in biomedical research. We present an updated reference genome assembly (Mmul_10, contig N50 = 46 Mbp) that increases the sequence contiguity 120-fold and annotate it using 6.5 million full-length transcripts, thus improving our understanding of gene content, isoform diversity, and repeat organization.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAn amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe domestic cat (Felis catus) numbers over 94 million in the USA alone, occupies households as a companion animal, and, like humans, suffers from cancer and common and rare diseases. However, genome-wide sequence variant information is limited for this species. To empower trait analyses, a new cat genome reference assembly was developed from PacBio long sequence reads that significantly improve sequence representation and assembly contiguity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica) is a popular domestic poultry species and an increasingly significant model species in avian developmental, behavioural and disease research.
Results: We have produced a high-quality quail genome sequence, spanning 0.93 Gb assigned to 33 chromosomes.
Background: The wide variety of specialized permissive and repressive mechanisms by which germ cells regulate developmental gene expression are not well understood genome-wide. Isolation of germ cells with high integrity and purity from living animals is necessary to address these open questions, but no straightforward methods are currently available.
Results: Here we present an experimental paradigm that permits the isolation of nuclei from C.
We have used RNA-seq in to produce transcription profiles for seven specific embryonic cell populations from gastrulation to the onset of terminal differentiation. The expression data for these seven cell populations, covering major cell lineages and tissues in the worm reveal the complex and dynamic changes in gene expression, both spatially and temporally. Also, within genes, start sites and exon usage can be highly differential, producing transcripts that are specific to developmental periods or cell lineages.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe extreme rarity of asexual vertebrates in nature is generally explained by genomic decay due to absence of meiotic recombination, thus leading to extinction of such lineages. We explore features of a vertebrate asexual genome, the Amazon molly, Poecilia formosa, and find few signs of genetic degeneration but unique genetic variability and ongoing evolution. We uncovered a substantial clonal polymorphism and, as a conserved feature from its interspecific hybrid origin, a 10-fold higher heterozygosity than in the sexual parental species.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTo develop a catalog of regulatory sites in two major model organisms, and , the modERN (model organism Encyclopedia of Regulatory Networks) consortium has systematically assayed the binding sites of transcription factors (TFs). Combined with data produced by our predecessor, modENCODE (Model Organism ENCyclopedia Of DNA Elements), we now have data for 262 TFs identifying 1.23 M sites in the fly genome and 217 TFs identifying 0.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe chimpanzee is arguably the most important species for the study of human origins. A key resource for these studies is a high-quality reference genome assembly; however, as with most mammalian genomes, the current iteration of the chimpanzee reference genome assembly is highly fragmented. In the current iteration of the chimpanzee reference genome assembly (Pan_tro_2.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBiomphalaria snails are instrumental in transmission of the human blood fluke Schistosoma mansoni. With the World Health Organization's goal to eliminate schistosomiasis as a global health problem by 2025, there is now renewed emphasis on snail control. Here, we characterize the genome of Biomphalaria glabrata, a lophotrochozoan protostome, and provide timely and important information on snail biology.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe importance of the Gallus gallus (chicken) as a model organism and agricultural animal merits a continuation of sequence assembly improvement efforts. We present a new version of the chicken genome assembly (Gallus_gallus-5.0; GCA_000002315.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWe generated detailed RNA-seq data for the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans with high temporal resolution in the embryo as well as representative samples from post-embryonic stages across the life cycle. The data reveal that early and late embryogenesis is accompanied by large numbers of genes changing expression, whereas fewer genes are changing in mid-embryogenesis. This lull in genes changing expression correlates with a period during which histone mRNAs produce almost 40% of the RNA-seq reads.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHigh-resolution genetic and physical maps are invaluable tools for building accurate genome assemblies, and interpreting results of genome-wide association studies (GWAS). Previous genetic and physical maps anchored good quality draft assemblies of the domestic cat genome, enabling the discovery of numerous genes underlying hereditary disease and phenotypes of interest to the biomedical science and breeding communities. However, these maps lacked sufficient marker density to order thousands of shorter scaffolds in earlier assemblies, which instead relied heavily on comparative mapping with related species.
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