Category Ranking
98%
Total Visits
921
Avg Visit Duration
2 minutes
Citations
20
Article Abstract
The maintenance of chromosome integrity is crucial for genetic stability. However, programmed chromosome fragmentations are known to occur in many organisms, and in the ciliate Tetrahymena the five germline chromosomes are fragmented into hundreds of minichromosomes during somatic nuclear differentiation. Here, we showed that there are different fates of these minichromosomes after chromosome breakage. Among the 326 somatic minichromosomes identified using genomic data, 50 are selectively eliminated from the mature somatic genome. Interestingly, many and probably most of these minichromosomes are eliminated during the growth period between 6 and 20 doublings right after conjugation. Genes with potential conjugation-specific functions are found in these minichromosomes. This study revealed a new mode of programmed DNA elimination in ciliates similar to those observed in parasitic nematodes, which could play a role in developmental gene regulation.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5091840 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1006403 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Allele-specific HLA LOH in solid tumors: distinct patterns by tumor type and potential prognostic relevance.
J Immunother Cancer
September 2025
Affini-T Therapeutics Inc, Watertown, Massachusetts, USA.
T-cell receptors (TCRs) recognize antigens derived from fragments of somatically expressed proteins that are degraded by the proteasome and presented by specific human leukocyte antigen (HLA) molecules. Recent therapeutic advances using the TCR as a tumor-targeting moiety have focused attention on loss of heterozygosity (LOH) as a potential resistance mechanism. Allele-specific LOH, rather than allele-agnostic, is particularly pertinent, but rarely evaluated.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDiscriminatory power of the Precision ID GlobalFiler™ NGS STR panel v2 in monozygotic twins for forensic applications.
Sci Justice
September 2025
Departamento de Medicina Legal, Bioética, Medicina do Trabalho e Medicina Física e Reabilitação, Faculdade de Medicina FMUSP, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil. Electronic address:
Short Tandem Repeats (STRs) are the standard technique used in forensic genetics for individual identification due to their high polymorphism and robustness. Although Capillary Electrophoresis (CE) enables the analysis of many STRs, Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) offers enhanced resolution and the ability to detect STRs' isoalleles and their flanking regions, enhancing the discrimination power of this analysis. Despite the fact that STR kits for NGS are well standardized for evaluating forensic samples, there is no data on their effectiveness in differentiating monozygotic (MZ) twins, which are indistinguishable by CE.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSomatic mtDNA mutations at intermediate levels of heteroplasmy are a source of functional heterogeneity among primary leukemic cells.
Sci Adv
September 2025
Department of Cell & Molecular Biology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA.
Somatic mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) mutations are frequently observed in tumors, yet their role in pediatric cancers remains poorly understood. The heteroplasmic nature of mtDNA-where mutant and wild-type mtDNA coexist-complicates efforts to define its contribution to disease progression. In this study, bulk whole-genome sequencing of 637 matched tumor-normal samples from the Pediatric Cancer Genome Project revealed an enrichment of functionally impactful mtDNA variants in specific pediatric leukemia subtypes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFChallenges in the return of molecular tumor profiling results.
J Natl Cancer Inst
September 2025
Associate Director Laboratory for Molecular Pediatric Pathology (LaMPP), Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, 02115, MA, USA.
Next-generation sequencing (NGS) has transformed cancer care by providing essential insights for diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment. However, variability in testing timing, reporting practices, and interpretation challenges limits its clinical impact. This manuscript highlights key opportunities to optimize somatic reporting, emphasizing the importance of timely testing throughout the cancer care continuum to maximize the diagnostic and therapeutic relevance of findings.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFResolving a century-old enigma: potato 'Bolters' originate from instability of the StCDF1.3 allele.
Theor Appl Genet
September 2025
Plant Breeding, Wageningen University & Research, P.O. Box 386, 6700 AJ, Wageningen, The Netherlands.
Potato bolters are caused by excision of a transposon from the StCDF1.3 allele, resulting in a somatic mutant with late maturity. Somatic mutations during vegetative propagation can lead to novel genotypes, known as sports.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF