Published online 30 January 2019 Nucleic Acids Research, 2019, Vol. 47, No. 5 2143–2159 doi: 10.1093/nar/gkz011
SURVEY AND SUMMARY Matching tRNA modifications in humans to their known and predicted enzymes Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/nar/article-abstract/47/5/2143/5304329 by Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam user on 12 March 2019 Valerie´ de Crecy-Lagard´ 1,2,*, Pietro Boccaletto3, Carl G. Mangleburg1, Puneet Sharma4,5, Todd M. Lowe 6,*, Sebastian A. Leidel 4,5,7,* and Janusz M. Bujnicki 3,8,*
1Department of Microbiology and Cell Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA, 2Cancer and Genetic Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA, 3Laboratory of Bioinformatics and Protein Engineering, International Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, ul. Trojdena 4, 02-109 Warsaw, Poland, 4Max Planck Research Group for RNA Biology, Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine, 48149 Muenster, Germany, 5Cells-in-Motion Cluster of Excellence, University of Muenster, 48149 Muenster, Germany, 6Department of Biomolecular Engineering, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA, 7Research Group for RNA Biochemistry, Institute of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Bern, 3012 Bern, Switzerland and 8Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University, ul. Umultowska 89, 61-614 Poznan,´ Poland
Received September 05, 2018; Revised December 28, 2018; Editorial Decision January 03, 2019; Accepted January 10, 2019
ABSTRACT cases in detail and propose candidates whenever possible. Finally, tissue-specific expression analy- tRNA are post-transcriptionally modified by chemi- sis shows that modification genes are highly ex- cal modifications that affect all aspects of tRNA bi- pressed in proliferative tissues like testis and trans- ology. An increasing number of mutations underly- formed cells, but scarcely in differentiated tissues, ing human genetic diseases map to genes encoding with the exception of the cerebellum. Our work pro- for tRNA modification enzymes. However, our knowl- vides a comprehensive up to date compilation of hu- edge on human tRNA-modification genes remains man tRNA modifications and their enzymes that can fragmentary and the most comprehensive RNA mod- be used as a resource for further studies. ification database currently contains information on approximately 20% of human cytosolic tRNAs, pri- marily based on biochemical studies. Recent high- INTRODUCTION throughput methods such as DM-tRNA-seq now al- The acquisition of post-transcriptional chemical modifica- low annotation of a majority of tRNAs for six specific tions is an essential part of the maturation process required base modifications. Furthermore, we identified large to generate functional tRNA molecules (1). Modifications gaps in knowledge when we predicted all cytosolic have different roles in controlling stability, folding and de- and mitochondrial human tRNA modification genes. coding properties of tRNAs and can be determinants or Only 48% of the candidate cytosolic tRNA modifica- anti-determinants for other components of the translation tion enzymes have been experimentally validated in apparatus like e.g. aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases (2,3). In mammals (either directly or in a heterologous sys- addition, tRNA modifications can be recognition elements tem). Approximately 23% of the modification genes of ribonucleases (4), leading to the generation of tRNA fragments that affect multiple cellular processes (5). (cytosolic and mitochondrial combined) remain un- However, very few modifications such as1 m G37, 55 or known. We discuss these ‘unidentified enzymes’ t6A37 are present at a specific position of a particular tRNA
*To whom correspondence should be addressed. Tel: +1 352 392 9416; Fax: +1 352 392 5922; Email: [email protected] Correspondence may also be addressed to Todd Lowe. Tel: +1 831 459 1511; Email: [email protected] Correspondence may also be addressed to Sebastian Leidel. Tel: +41 31 6314296; Email: [email protected] Correspondence may also be addressed to Janusz Bujnicki. Tel: +48 22 597 0750; Fax: +48 22 597 0715; Email: [email protected] Present address: Carl G. Mangleburg, Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA.