Mitochondrial to nuclear gene transfer via synthetic evolution

线粒体，细胞能量产生的中心，已经转移了它们自己的大部分基因 在进化过程中与核基因组有关的物质。然而，少数基因仍然存在于所有线粒体基因组中， 尽管它们对有害的代谢副产物和突变很敏感。线粒体DNA的后果 突变意义重大：它们与一系列严重疾病有关，而且突变是累积的 在一生中被认为会导致神经退行性疾病和衰老过程本身。这就提高了 为什么线粒体基因组仍然存在的问题，尽管潜在的严重后果 真核生物的适合性，以及限制或支持线粒体基因的细胞过程是什么 来自细胞核的表达吗？这些问题可以通过对这些问题的合成“异位”表达来回答 来自细胞核受保护环境的基因。最近的研究表明，缺乏成功 这一策略是因为不仅在异位蛋白中需要适应，而且在几个细胞中也需要适应 流程。这个项目的目标是系统地研究酵母中的异位表达。 高通量和机械化的生化方法。酵母菌是唯一适合研究这个问题的。 因为它是为数不多的可以操纵线粒体DNA的生物之一，并且服从于基因组和 合成生物学技术。4个尚未实验的酵母基因的异位表达 到目前为止，每一种病毒都与疾病有关，将通过以下方式在多个版本中进行测试 开发具有成本效益的下一代寡核苷酸合成技术。运用基因的力量 筛选，弱成功的同种异体菌株将被用来发现改善同种异体的基因抑制因子 通过基因组筛选和实验室进化表达，揭示参与核基因的途径 转移与线粒体生物发生。这些发现将被用来生产“超级宿主”酵母菌株 他们的背景强烈支持异类表达。发现阻止异体移植的障碍 表达和测试为什么mtDNA基因被保留的相互竞争的假设，蛋白质定位， 将对贩运、易降解和线粒体运输进行追踪。这些重新连接的菌株将 在转录学、生物能量学和机械学水平上具有特征。最后，异位表达的 基因将被逐步组合，以产生具有最小线粒体基因组的菌株。这项工作将是 由功能基因组学、线粒体生物能量学和进化论领域的领导小组进行。它会揭示出 线粒体基因的核移植在进化过程中面临的障碍，线粒体基因产物是如何 表达和加工，并建立了对线粒体生物发生的关键因素的系统了解。 该项目还将为研究线粒体DNA在衰老和神经退行性变中的作用开辟新的途径。 精神错乱。

Mitochondria, the centers of cellular energy production, have transferred the majority of their own genetic material to the nuclear genome during evolution. Yet a handful of genes remain in all mitochondrial genomes, despite their susceptibility to damaging metabolic byproducts and mutations. The consequences of mtDNA mutations are significant: they are implicated in a range of severe diseases, and the mutations accumulated during a lifetime are believed to lead to neurodegenerative disorders and the ageing process itself. This raises the question of why the mitochondrial genome still exists, despite the potentially severe consequences on fitness in all eukaryotes, and what are the cellular processes that limit or support mitochondrial gene expression from the nucleus? These questions can be answered by synthetic 'allotopic' expression of these genes from the protected environment of the nucleus. Recent studies have suggested that the lack of success with this strategy is due to the need for adaptations not only in the allotopic protein, but also in several cellular processes. The goal of this project is to systematically study allotopic expression in yeast using a combination of high-throughput and mechanistic biochemical approaches. Yeast is uniquely suited to study this problem because it is one of few organisms where mtDNA can be manipulated, and is amenable to genomic and synthetic biology techniques. Allotopic expression of the 4 yeast genes that have not been experimentally transferred thus far, each of which have been implicated in disease, will be tested in multiple versions by exploiting cost-effective, next-generation oligonucleotide synthesis technology. Applying the power of genetic screens, weakly successful allotopic strains will be used to discover genetic suppressors that improve allotopic expression through genomic screens and in-lab evolution, revealing pathways involved in nuclear gene transfer and mitochondrial biogenesis. These discoveries will be used to produce 'superhost' yeast strains whose backgrounds strongly favour allotopic expression. To discover the roadblocks that prevent allotopic expression and test competing hypotheses for why mtDNA genes have been retained, protein localization, trafficking, susceptibility to degradation, and mitochondrial transport will be tracked. These rewired strains will be characterized at the transcriptomic, bioenergetic, and mechanistic levels. Finally, the allotopically expressed genes will be combined stepwise to generate a strain with a minimal mitochondrial genome. This work will be carried out by leading groups in functional genomics, mitochondrial bioenergetics, and evolution. It will reveal obstacles facing nuclear transfer of mitochondrial genes during evolution, how mitochondrial gene products are expressed and processed, and build a systematic understanding of the key factors in mitochondrial biogenesis. This project will also open new avenues for studying the role of mtDNA in ageing and neurodegenerative disorders.