Cryptic promoter activation occurs by at least two different mechanisms in the Arabidopsis genome.

In gene-trap screening of plant genomes, promoterless reporter constructs are often expressed without trapping of annotated gene promoters. The molecular basis of this phenomenon, which has been interpreted as the trapping of cryptic promoters, is poorly understood. Here, we found that cryptic promoter activation occurs by at least two different mechanisms using Arabidopsis gene-trap lines in which a firefly luciferase (LUC) open reading frame (ORF) without an apparent promoter sequence was expressed from intergenic regions: one mechanism is 'cryptic promoter capturing', in which the LUC ORF captured pre-existing promoter-like chromatin marked by H3K4me3 and H2A.

Preclinical evaluation of an O(6)-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase-siRNA/liposome complex administered by convection-enhanced delivery to rat and porcine brains.

The main determinant of glioblastoma (GBM) resistance to temozolomide (TMZ) is thought to be O(6)-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT), which is a DNA-repair enzyme that removes alkyl groups from the O(6)-position of guanine. Previously, we reported that a MGMT-siRNA/cationic liposome complex exerted a clear synergistic antitumor effect in combination with TMZ. Translation to a clinical setting might be desirable for reinforcing the efficacy of TMZ therapy for GBM.

Knockdown of legumain inhibits cleavage of annexin A2 in the mouse kidney.

Legumain (EC 3.4.22.

Transcriptome analysis of respiration-responsive genes in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii: mitochondrial retrograde signaling coordinates the genes for cell proliferation with energy-producing metabolism.

Plant organelles are not only the recipients of signals from the nucleus, but also elicit signals to regulate nuclear genes; the latter process is called retrograde regulation. We previously reported a novel mitochondrial retrograde regulation in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii; nuclear photosynthesis genes are regulated in response to mitochondrial respiratory electron transport (RET). However, the physiological roles of this retrograde regulation are not yet fully understood.

Efficient delivery of liposome-mediated MGMT-siRNA reinforces the cytotoxity of temozolomide in GBM-initiating cells.

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is one of the most formidable brain tumors with a mean survival period of approximately 12 months. To date, a combination of radiotherapy and chemotherapy with an oral alkylating agent, temozolomide (TMZ), has been used as first-line therapy for glioma. However, the efficacy of chemotherapy for treating GBM is very limited; this is partly because of the high activity levels of the DNA repair protein O⁶-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) in tumor cells, which creates a resistant phenotype by blunting the therapeutic effect of alkylating agents.