Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
24
pubmed:dateCreated
2002-6-10
pubmed:databankReference
pubmed:abstractText
Trypanosome antigenic variation, involving differential expression of variant surface glycoprotein (VSG) genes, has a strong association with telomeres and with DNA recombination. All expressed VSGs are telomeric, and differential activation involves recombination into the telomeric environment or silencing/activation of subtelomeric promoters. A number of pathogen contingency gene systems associated with immune evasion involve telomeric loci, which has prompted speculation that chromosome ends provide conditions conducive for the operation of rapid gene switching mechanisms. Ku is a protein associated with eukaryotic telomeres that is directly involved in DNA recombination and in gene silencing. We have tested the hypothesis that Ku in trypanosomes is centrally involved in differential VSG expression. We show, via the generation of null mutants, that trypanosome Ku is closely involved in telomere length maintenance, more so for a transcriptionally active than an inactive telomere, but exhibits no detectable influence on DNA double strand break repair. The absence of Ku and the consequent great shortening of telomeres had no detectable influence either on the rate of VSG switching or on the silencing of the telomeric promoters of the VSG subset that is expressed in the tsetse fly.
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:chemical
http://linkedlifedata.com/resource/pubmed/chemical/Antigens, Nuclear, http://linkedlifedata.com/resource/pubmed/chemical/DNA, http://linkedlifedata.com/resource/pubmed/chemical/DNA Helicases, http://linkedlifedata.com/resource/pubmed/chemical/DNA-Binding Proteins, http://linkedlifedata.com/resource/pubmed/chemical/Ku autoantigen, http://linkedlifedata.com/resource/pubmed/chemical/Methyl Methanesulfonate, http://linkedlifedata.com/resource/pubmed/chemical/Mutagens, http://linkedlifedata.com/resource/pubmed/chemical/Nuclear Proteins, http://linkedlifedata.com/resource/pubmed/chemical/Nucleic Acid Synthesis Inhibitors, http://linkedlifedata.com/resource/pubmed/chemical/Phleomycins, http://linkedlifedata.com/resource/pubmed/chemical/RNA, http://linkedlifedata.com/resource/pubmed/chemical/Variant Surface Glycoproteins..., http://linkedlifedata.com/resource/pubmed/chemical/XRCC5 protein, human
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:month
Jun
pubmed:issn
0021-9258
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Print
pubmed:day
14
pubmed:volume
277
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
21269-77
pubmed:dateRevised
2008-11-21
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Amino Acid Sequence, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Animals, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Animals, Genetically Modified, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Antigens, Nuclear, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Binding Sites, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Blotting, Southern, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-DNA, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-DNA Damage, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-DNA Helicases, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-DNA-Binding Proteins, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Gene Silencing, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Homozygote, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Methyl Methanesulfonate, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Molecular Sequence Data, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Mutagens, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Mutation, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Nuclear Proteins, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Nucleic Acid Synthesis Inhibitors, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Phleomycins, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Promoter Regions, Genetic, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-RNA, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Recombination, Genetic, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Sequence Homology, Amino Acid, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Telomere, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Transcription, Genetic, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Trypanosoma, pubmed-meshheading:11919193-Variant Surface Glycoproteins, Trypanosoma
pubmed:year
2002
pubmed:articleTitle
Ku is important for telomere maintenance, but not for differential expression of telomeric VSG genes, in African trypanosomes.
pubmed:affiliation
Wellcome Centre for Molecular Parasitology, University of Glasgow, Anderson College, 56 Dumbarton Road, Glasgow, G11 6NU, Scotland, United Kingdom.
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't