Exposure to elevated glucocorticoid during development primes altered transcriptional responses to acute stress in adulthood.

Early life stress (ELS) is a major risk factor for developing psychiatric disorders, with glucocorticoids (GCs) implicated in mediating its effects in shaping adult phenotypes. In this process, exposure to high levels of developmental GC (hdGC) is thought to induce molecular changes that prime differential adult responses. However, identities of molecules targeted by hdGC exposure are not completely known. Here, we describe lifelong molecular consequences of hdGC exposure using a newly developed zebrafish double-hit stress model, which shows altered behaviors and stress hypersensitivity in adulthood. We identify a set of primed genes displaying altered expression only upon acute stress in hdGC-exposed adult fish brains. Interestingly, this gene set is enriched in risk factors for psychiatric disorders in humans. Lastly, we identify altered epigenetic regulatory elements following hdGC exposure. Thus, our study provides comprehensive datasets delineating potential molecular targets mediating the impact of hdGC exposure on adult responses.

Characterization of transcriptional profiles associated with stress-induced neuronal activation in Arc-GFP mice.

Chronic stress has become a predominant factor associated with a variety of psychiatric disorders, such as depression and anxiety, in both human and animal models. Although multiple studies have looked at transcriptional changes after social defeat stress, these studies primarily focus on bulk tissues, which might dilute important molecular signatures of social interaction in activated cells. In this study, we employed the Arc-GFP mouse model in conjunction with chronic social defeat (CSD) to selectively isolate activated nuclei (AN) populations in the ventral hippocampus (vHIP) and prefrontal cortex (PFC) of resilient and susceptible animals. Nuclear RNA-seq of susceptible vs. resilient populations revealed distinct transcriptional profiles linked predominantly with neuronal and synaptic regulation mechanisms. In the vHIP, susceptible AN exhibited increased expression of genes related to the cytoskeleton and synaptic organization. At the same time, resilient AN showed upregulation of cell adhesion genes and differential expression of major glutamatergic subunits. In the PFC, susceptible mice exhibited upregulation of synaptotagmins and immediate early genes (IEGs), suggesting a potentially over-amplified neuronal activity state. Our findings provide a novel view of stress-exposed neuronal activation and the molecular response mechanisms in stress-susceptible vs. resilient animals, which may have important implications for understanding mental resilience.

Nuclei on the Rise: When Nuclei-Based Methods Meet Next-Generation Sequencing.

In the last decade, we have witnessed an upsurge in nuclei-based studies, particularly coupled with next-generation sequencing. Such studies aim at understanding the molecular states that exist in heterogeneous cell populations by applying increasingly more affordable sequencing approaches, in addition to optimized methodologies developed to isolate and select nuclei. Although these powerful new methods promise unprecedented insights, it is important to understand and critically consider the associated challenges. Here, we provide a comprehensive overview of the rise of nuclei-based studies and elaborate on their advantages and disadvantages, with a specific focus on their utility for transcriptomic sequencing analyses. Improved designs and appropriate use of the various experimental strategies will result in acquiring biologically accurate and meaningful information.

INTACT vs. FANS for Cell-Type-Specific Nuclei Sorting: A Comprehensive Qualitative and Quantitative Comparison.

Increasing numbers of studies seek to characterize the different cellular sub-populations present in mammalian tissues. The techniques "Isolation of Nuclei Tagged in Specific Cell Types" (INTACT) or "Fluorescence-Activated Nuclei Sorting" (FANS) are frequently used for isolating nuclei of specific cellular subtypes. These nuclei are then used for molecular characterization of the cellular sub-populations. Despite the increasing popularity of both techniques, little is known about their isolation efficiency, advantages, and disadvantages or downstream molecular effects. In our study, we compared the physical and molecular attributes of sfGFP+ nuclei isolated by the two methods-INTACT and FANS-from the neocortices of Arc-CreERT2 × CAG-Sun1/sfGFP animals. We identified differences in efficiency of sfGFP+ nuclei isolation, nuclear size as well as transcriptional (RNA-seq) and chromatin accessibility (ATAC-seq) states. Therefore, our study presents a comprehensive comparison between the two widely used nuclei sorting techniques, identifying the advantages and disadvantages for both INTACT and FANS. Our conclusions are summarized in a table to guide researchers in selecting the most suitable methodology for their individual experimental design.

Identification, characterization and expression analysis of pigeonpea miRNAs in response to Fusarium wilt.

Upon confrontation with unfavourable conditions, plants invoke a very complex set of biochemical and physiological reactions and alter gene expression patterns to combat the situations. MicroRNAs (miRNAs), a class of small non-coding RNA, contribute extensively in regulation of gene expression through translation inhibition or degradation of their target mRNAs during such conditions. Therefore, identification of miRNAs and their targets holds importance in understanding the regulatory networks triggered during stress. Structure and sequence similarity based in silico prediction of miRNAs in Cajanus cajan L. (Pigeonpea) draft genome sequence has been carried out earlier. These annotations also appear in related GenBank genome sequence entries. However, there are no reports available on context dependent miRNA expression and their targets in pigeonpea. Therefore, in the present study we addressed these questions computationally, using pigeonpea EST sequence information. We identified five novel pigeonpea miRNA precursors, their mature forms and targets. Interestingly, only one of these miRNAs (miR169i-3p) was identified earlier in draft genome sequence. We then validated expression of these miRNAs, experimentally. It was also observed that these miRNAs show differential expression patterns in response to Fusarium inoculation indicating their biotic stress responsive nature. Overall these results will help towards better understanding the regulatory network of defense during pigeonpea -pathogen interactions and role of miRNAs in the process.