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   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
    When water temperatures change, the molecular motors of cephalopods do   
   too    
      
     Date:   
         June 8, 2023   
     Source:   
         University of California - San Diego   
     Summary:   
         Working with live squid hatchlings, scientists find the animals   
         can tune their proteome on the fly in response to changes in ocean   
         temperature via the unique process of RNA recoding. The findings   
         inspire new questions about basic protein function.   
      
      
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   Cephalopods are a large family of marine animals that includes octopuses,   
   cuttlefish and squid. They live in every ocean, from warm, shallow   
   tropical waters to near-freezing, abyssal depths. More remarkably,   
   report two scientists at University of California San Diego in a new   
   study, at least some cephalopods possess the ability to recode protein   
   motors within cells to adapt "on the fly" to different water temperatures.   
      
   Writing in the June 8, 2023 edition of Cell, first author Kavita   
   J. Rangan, PhD, a postdoctoral researcher in the lab of senior author   
   Samara L. Reck- Peterson, PhD, a professor in the departments of Cellular   
   and Molecular Medicine at UC San Diego School of Medicine and Cell   
   and Developmental Biology at UC San Diego and an Investigator of the   
   Howard Hughes Medical Institute, describe how opalescent inshore squid   
   (Doryteuthis opalescens) employ RNA recoding to change amino acids at   
   the protein level, improving the function of molecular motors that carry   
   out diverse functions within cells in colder waters.   
      
   RNA recoding allows organisms to edit genetic information from the genomic   
   blueprint to create new proteins. The process is rare in humans but is   
   common in soft-bodied cephalopods, such as D. opalescens, which makes   
   seasonal spawning migrations along the coast of San Diego.   
      
   "Cephalopods like D. opalescens are remarkable for their large nervous   
   systems, body innovations and complex behaviors" said Rangan, "and   
   their extensive use of RNA recoding has raised many questions about   
   how this process might be involved in responding to environmental cues   
   like temperature."  In the new study, Rangan and Reck-Peterson looked   
   at changes to a pair of proteins in squid cells that serve as molecular   
   motors transporting a variety of intracellular cargoes along cellular   
   highways called microtubules.   
      
   Specifically, the researchers focused on molecular motor proteins called   
   kinesin and dynein, both of which are fundamental to transportation   
   within all cells, including neurons. In humans, mutations in both motors   
   are linked to neurodegenerative diseases.   
      
   Working with live squid hatchlings at Scripps Institution of Oceanography,   
   Rangan found that recoding of kinesin increased in animals as they   
   experienced colder ocean water temperatures. Rangan then recreated recoded   
   kinesin proteins using recombinant DNA technology and biochemistry. She   
   then measured the movement of single motor molecules using advanced   
   light microscopy and found that the recoded kinesin motors functioned   
   better at cold temperatures.   
      
   "The work suggests that squid can tune their proteome (an organism's   
   entire complement of proteins) on the fly in response to changes in ocean   
   temperature," said Reck-Peterson. "One can speculate that this allows   
   these marine ectotherms -- animals that depend on external sources of body   
   heat -- to survive and thrive in a broad range of ocean temperatures."   
   The scientists also found that RNA recoding varied across tissues,   
   generating new kinesin variants with distinct movement properties.   
      
   "This work supports the idea that recoding in cephalopods is important   
   for dynamically tuning protein function to support physiological needs and   
   acclimate to changing environmental conditions" said Reck-Peterson. "These   
   animals are taking a completely unique approach to adapting to their   
   surroundings."  Rangan said the findings also suggest the squid "editome"   
   may be a valuable resource for highlighting regions of molecules that   
   are amenable to plasticity or change. She is currently developing a   
   database that includes the entire squid editome across different ocean   
   temperatures.   
      
   "In highly conserved proteins, like kinesin and dynein, cephalopod   
   recoding sites can point to overlooked residues of functional   
   significance, said Rangan, "and this has broader implications for   
   understanding basic protein function as well as for engineering proteins   
   with specific functions. Cephalopods may be able to show us where to   
   look and what changes to make."   
       * RELATED_TOPICS   
             o Plants_&_Animals   
                   # Molecular_Biology # Cell_Biology # Biotechnology #   
                   Genetics   
             o Earth_&_Climate   
                   # Climate # Environmental_Awareness # Oceanography # Water   
       * RELATED_TERMS   
             o Protein_structure o Giant_squid o Colossal_Squid o Protein   
             o Housefly o RNA o Protein_folding o DNA   
      
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   Story Source: Materials provided by   
   University_of_California_-_San_Diego. Original written by Scott   
   LaFee. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.   
      
      
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   Journal Reference:   
      1. Kavita J. Rangan, Samara L. Reck-Peterson. RNA recoding in   
      cephalopods   
         tailors microtubule motor protein function. Cell, 2023; 186 (12):   
         2531 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2023.04.032   
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   Link to news story:   
   https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/06/230608121028.htm   
      
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