Department of Clinical Veterinary Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, 712100, China; Key Laboratory of Animal Biotechnology of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, 712100, China.
NHC Key Laboratory of Chronobiology, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan, 610000, China.
Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2024 Feb 12;696:149422. doi: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2023.149422. Epub 2023 Dec 25.
Identification and functional analysis of key genes regulated by the circadian clock system will provide a comprehensive understanding of the underlying mechanisms through which circadian clock disruption impairs the health of living organisms. The initial phase involved bioinformatics analysis, drawing insights from three RNA-seq datasets (GSE184303, GSE114400, and GSE199061) derived from wild-type mouse liver tissues, which encompassed six distinct time points across a day. As expected, 536 overlapping genes exhibiting rhythmic expression patterns were identified. By intersecting these genes with differentially expressed genes (DEGs) originating from liver RNA-seq data at two representative time points (circadian time, CT: CT2 and CT14) in global Bmal1 knockout mice (Bmal1), hepatocyte-specific Bmal1 knockout mice (L-Bmal1), and their corresponding control groups, 80 genes potentially regulated by BMAL1 (referred to as BMAL1-regulated genes, BRGs) were identified. These genes were significantly enriched in glycolipid metabolism, immune response, and tumorigenesis pathways. Eight BRGs (Nr1d1, Cry1, Gys2, Homer2, Serpina6, Slc2a2, Nmrk1, and Upp2) were selected to validate their expression patterns in both control and L-Bmal1 mice livers over 24 h. Real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction results demonstrated a comprehensive loss of rhythmic expression patterns in the eight selected BRGs in L-Bmal1 mice, in contrast to the discernible rhythmic patterns observed in the livers of control mice. Additionally, significant reductions in the expression levels of these selected BRGs, excluding Cry1, were also observed in L-Bmal1 mice livers. Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP)-seq (GSE13505 and GSE39860) and JASPAR analyses validated the rhythmic binding of BMAL1 to the promoter and intron regions of these genes. Moreover, the progression of conditions, from basic steatosis to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, and eventual malignancy, demonstrated a continuous gradual decline in Bmal1 transcripts in the human liver. Combining the aforementioned BRGs with DEGs derived from human liver cancer datasets identified Gys2 and Upp2 as potential node genes bridging the circadian clock system and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). In addition, CCK8 and wound healing assays demonstrated that the overexpression of human GYS2 and UPP2 proteins inhibited the proliferation and migration of HepG2 cells, accompanied by elevated expression of p53, a tumor suppressor protein. In summary, this study systematically identified rhythmic genes in the mouse liver, and a subset of circadian genes potentially regulated by BMAL1. Two circadian genes, Gys2 and Upp2, have been proposed and validated as potential candidates for advancing the prevention and treatment of HCC.
鉴定和功能分析受生物钟系统调控的关键基因,将全面了解生物钟紊乱损害生物机体健康的潜在机制。该研究首先进行生物信息学分析,从三个源自野生型小鼠肝组织的 RNA-seq 数据集(GSE184303、GSE114400 和 GSE199061)中提取见解,这些数据集涵盖一天中的六个不同时间点。不出所料,鉴定到 536 个具有节律表达模式的重叠基因。通过将这些基因与源自两个具有代表性时间点(生物钟时间,CT:CT2 和 CT14)的肝 RNA-seq 数据的差异表达基因(DEGs)进行交集,在全局 Bmal1 敲除小鼠(Bmal1)、肝细胞特异性 Bmal1 敲除小鼠(L-Bmal1)及其相应的对照组中,鉴定到 80 个可能受 BMAL1 调控的基因(称为 BMAL1 调控基因,BRGs)。这些基因在糖脂代谢、免疫反应和肿瘤发生途径中显著富集。选择 8 个 BRGs(Nr1d1、Cry1、Gys2、Homer2、Serpina6、Slc2a2、Nmrk1 和 Upp2),以验证它们在 24 小时内对照和 L-Bmal1 小鼠肝脏中的表达模式。实时定量聚合酶链反应结果表明,在 L-Bmal1 小鼠中,这 8 个选定的 BRGs 的表达模式全面丧失了节律性,而在对照组小鼠的肝脏中则可以观察到明显的节律性模式。此外,在 L-Bmal1 小鼠肝脏中,这些选定的 BRGs 的表达水平也显著降低,除了 Cry1。染色质免疫沉淀(ChIP)-seq(GSE13505 和 GSE39860)和 JASPAR 分析验证了 BMAL1 与这些基因启动子和内含子区域的节律性结合。此外,从基本脂肪变性到非酒精性脂肪性肝病,再到最终的恶性肿瘤,人类肝脏中的 Bmal1 转录本逐渐下降,表明情况的进展。将上述 BRGs 与源自人类肝癌数据集的 DEGs 相结合,鉴定到 Gys2 和 Upp2 作为潜在的节点基因,连接生物钟系统和肝细胞癌(HCC)。此外,CCK8 和划痕愈合实验表明,人 GYS2 和 UPP2 蛋白的过表达抑制了 HepG2 细胞的增殖和迁移,并伴随着肿瘤抑制蛋白 p53 的高表达。总之,本研究系统地鉴定了小鼠肝脏中的节律性基因,以及一组可能受 BMAL1 调控的生物钟基因。两个生物钟基因,Gys2 和 Upp2,被提出并验证为推进 HCC 预防和治疗的潜在候选基因。
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