MSGID: 1:317/3 646c4166   
   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
    A multiomics approach provides insights into flu severity    
      
     Date:   
         May 22, 2023   
     Source:   
         Kyoto University   
     Summary:   
         Researchers were able to identify changes in the accessibility   
         (that is, the 'readability') of transposable elements. To do   
         this, the researchers used an approach combining various sets of   
         multiomics data, which characterize and quantify collections of   
         biomolecules in cells or organisms. One was the transcriptome,   
         which consists of all copies of RNA transcribed from DNA in the   
         cell. The other was the epigenome, which is the collection of   
         chemical changes to DNA that modify gene expression. An advantage   
         of this multiomics approach is that they were able to identify   
         families of transposable elements with changes in accessibility,   
         which would have likely been missed by previous approaches.   
      
      
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   FULL STORY   
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   Have you ever wondered why some people might get sicker than others, even   
   when they catch the same virus? It is not yet clear why this is. Viral   
   factors (such as differences in the strain of a virus) play a role in   
   this variability, but they cannot account for the wide range of responses   
   in different individuals infected by the same virus. A number of host   
   factors have also been considered, including pre-existing immunity, age,   
   sex, weight, and the microbiome.   
      
   Another important factor is the molecular biology within your cells. DNA   
   is shown as one long double-helical strand. So, you might expect that   
   the cell would always read genetic information in order, starting at   
   one end and going to the other. But this isn't the case. DNA contains   
   transposable elements , sometimes called "junk DNA," which can change   
   the regions of the genome are being read at a given time.   
      
   The work published in Cell Genomics by an international team led by Dr.   
      
   Guillaume Bourque, who studied the role of these transposable elements   
   on the severity of illness after influenza A virus infection.   
      
   By examining data from 39 individuals before and after infection with   
   influenza A virus, the researchers were able to identify changes in the   
   accessibility (that is, the "readability") of transposable elements. To   
   do this, the researchers used an approach combining various sets   
   of multiomics data, which characterize and quantify collections of   
   biomolecules in cells or organisms.   
      
   One was the transcriptome, which consists of all copies of RNA transcribed   
   from DNA in the cell. The other was the epigenome, which is the collection   
   of chemical changes to DNA that modify gene expression. An advantage of   
   this multiomics approach is that they were able to identify families of   
   transposable elements with changes in accessibility, which would have   
   likely been missed by previous approaches.   
      
   By considering these changes in transposable elements after viral   
   infection, they could identify several transcription factors (proteins   
   that turn specific genes "on" or "off") that likely contribute to   
   someone's response to infection.   
      
   Using these findings, the researchers were able to create a model that   
   could predict an individual's viral load after influenza A infection.   
      
   "A number of questions remain, such as whether the link between   
   transposable elements and viral load is actually causal and whether   
   these changes would be consistent over time," says lead author Xun   
   Chen. "But these findings are an important step toward understanding   
   the role that such factors play in the variability of illness severity   
   among individuals."  The authors include researchers from Kyoto University   
   in Japan, McGill University and the Universite' de Montre'al in Canada,   
   and the University of Chicago in the US.   
      
       * RELATED_TOPICS   
             o Health_&_Medicine   
                   # Viruses # Genes # Human_Biology # Infectious_Diseases   
             o Plants_&_Animals   
                   # Virology # Bird_Flu_Research # Biochemistry_Research   
                   # Biology   
       * RELATED_TERMS   
             o DNA_repair o DNA o DNA_microarray o Computational_genomics   
             o RNA o Telomere o Gene o Molecular_biology   
      
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   Story Source: Materials provided by Kyoto_University. Note: Content may   
   be edited for style and length.   
      
      
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   Journal Reference:   
      1. Xun Chen, Alain Pacis, Katherine A. Aracena, Saideep Gona,   
      Tony Kwan,   
         Cristian Groza, Yen Lung Lin, Renata Sindeaux, Vania Yotova, Albena   
         Pramatarova, Marie-Michelle Simon, Tomi Pastinen, Luis B. Barreiro,   
         Guillaume Bourque. Transposable elements are associated with the   
         variable response to influenza infection. Cell Genomics, 2023; 3   
         (5): 100292 DOI: 10.1016/j.xgen.2023.100292   
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   Link to news story:   
   https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/05/230522131353.htm   
      
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