Molly Weaver

The accessible chromatin landscape of the human genome.

DNase I hypersensitive sites (DHSs) are markers of regulatory DNA and have underpinned the discovery of all classes of cis-regulatory elements including enhancers, promoters, insulators, silencers and locus control regions. Here we present the first extensive map of human DHSs identified through genome-wide profiling in 125 diverse cell and tissue types. We identify ∼2.9 million DHSs that encompass virtually all known experimentally validated cis-regulatory sequences and expose a vast trove of novel elements, most with highly cell-selective regulation. Annotating these elements using ENCODE data reveals novel relationships between chromatin accessibility, transcription, DNA methylation and regulatory factor occupancy patterns. We connect ∼580,000 distal DHSs with their target promoters, revealing systematic pairing of different classes of distal DHSs and specific promoter types. Patterning of chromatin accessibility at many regulatory regions is organized with dozens to hundreds of co-activated elements, and the transcellular DNase I sensitivity pattern at a given region can predict cell-type-specific functional behaviours. The DHS landscape shows signatures of recent functional evolutionary constraint. However, the DHS compartment in pluripotent and immortalized cells exhibits higher mutation rates than that in highly differentiated cells, exposing an unexpected link between chromatin accessibility, proliferative potential and patterns of human variation.

Mapping and sequencing of structural variation from eight human genomes

Genetic variation among individual humans occurs on many different scales, ranging from gross alterations in the human karyotype to single nucleotide changes. Here we explore variation on an intermediate scale—particularly insertions, deletions and inversions affecting from a few thousand to a few million base pairs. We employed a clone-based method to interrogate this intermediate structural variation in eight individuals of diverse geographic ancestry. Our analysis provides a comprehensive overview of the normal pattern of structural variation present in these genomes, refining the location of 1,695 structural variants. We find that 50% were seen in more than one individual and that nearly half lay outside regions of the genome previously described as structurally variant. We discover 525 new insertion sequences that are not present in the human reference genome and show that many of these are variable in copy number between individuals. Complete sequencing of 261 structural variants reveals considerable locus complexity and provides insights into the different mutational processes that have shaped the human genome. These data provide the first high-resolution sequence map of human structural variation—a standard for genotyping platforms and a prelude to future individual genome sequencing projects.

An expansive human regulatory lexicon encoded in transcription factor footprints

Regulatory factor binding to genomic DNA protects the underlying sequence from cleavage by DNase I, leaving nucleotide-resolution footprints. Using genomic DNase I footprinting across 41 diverse cell and tissue types, we detected 45 million transcription factor occupancy events within regulatory regions, representing differential binding to 8.4 million distinct short sequence elements. Here we show that this small genomic sequence compartment, roughly twice the size of the exome, encodes an expansive repertoire of conserved recognition sequences for DNA-binding proteins that nearly doubles the size of the human cis–regulatory lexicon. We find that genetic variants affecting allelic chromatin states are concentrated in footprints, and that these elements are preferentially sheltered from DNA methylation. High-resolution DNase I cleavage patterns mirror nucleotide-level evolutionary conservation and track the crystallographic topography of protein–DNA interfaces, indicating that transcription factor structure has been evolutionarily imprinted on the human genome sequence. We identify a stereotyped 50-base-pair footprint that precisely defines the site of transcript origination within thousands of human promoters. Finally, we describe a large collection of novel regulatory factor recognition motifs that are highly conserved in both sequence and function, and exhibit cell-selective occupancy patterns that closely parallel major regulators of development, differentiation and pluripotency.

Targeted resequencing in epileptic encephalopathies identifies de novo mutations in CHD2 and SYNGAP1

Epileptic encephalopathies are a devastating group of epilepsies with poor prognosis, of which the majority are of unknown etiology. We perform targeted massively parallel resequencing of 19 known and 46 candidate genes for epileptic encephalopathy in 500 affected individuals (cases) to identify new genes involved and to investigate the phenotypic spectrum associated with mutations in known genes. Overall, we identified pathogenic mutations in 10% of our cohort. Six of the 46 candidate genes had 1 or more pathogenic variants, collectively accounting for 3% of our cohort. We show that de novo CHD2 and SYNGAP1 mutations are new causes of epileptic encephalopathies, accounting for 1.2% and 1% of cases, respectively. We also expand the phenotypic spectra explained by SCN1A, SCN2A and SCN8A mutations. To our knowledge, this is the largest cohort of cases with epileptic encephalopathies to undergo targeted resequencing. Implementation of this rapid and efficient method will change diagnosis and understanding of the molecular etiologies of these disorders.

Sequencing newly replicated DNA reveals widespread plasticity in human replication timing

Faithful transmission of genetic material to daughter cells involves a characteristic temporal order of DNA replication, which may play a significant role in the inheritance of epigenetic states. We developed a genome-scale approach—Repli Seq—to map temporally ordered replicating DNA using massively parallel sequencing and applied it to study regional variation in human DNA replication time across multiple human cell types. The method requires as few as 8,000 cytometry-fractionated cells for a single analysis, and provides high-resolution DNA replication patterns with respect to both cell-cycle time and genomic position. We find that different cell types exhibit characteristic replication signatures that reveal striking plasticity in regional replication time patterns covering at least 50% of the human genome. We also identified autosomal regions with marked biphasic replication timing that include known regions of monoallelic expression as well as many previously uncharacterized domains. Comparison with high-resolution genome-wide profiles of DNaseI sensitivity revealed that DNA replication typically initiates within foci of accessible chromatin comprising clustered DNaseI hypersensitive sites, and that replication time is better correlated with chromatin accessibility than with gene expression. The data collectively provide a unique, genome-wide picture of the epigenetic compartmentalization of the human genome and suggest that cell-lineage specification involves extensive reprogramming of replication timing patterns.

Widespread plasticity in CTCF occupancy linked to DNA methylation.

CTCF is a ubiquitously expressed regulator of fundamental genomic processes including transcription, intra- and interchromosomal interactions, and chromatin structure. Because of its critical role in genome function, CTCF binding patterns have long been assumed to be largely invariant across different cellular environments. Here we analyze genome-wide occupancy patterns of CTCF by ChIP-seq in 19 diverse human cell types, including normal primary cells and immortal lines. We observed highly reproducible yet surprisingly plastic genomic binding landscapes, indicative of strong cell-selective regulation of CTCF occupancy. Comparison with massively parallel bisulfite sequencing data indicates that 41% of variable CTCF binding is linked to differential DNA methylation, concentrated at two critical positions within the CTCF recognition sequence. Unexpectedly, CTCF binding patterns were markedly different in normal versus immortal cells, with the latter showing widespread disruption of CTCF binding associated with increased methylation. Strikingly, this disruption is accompanied by up-regulation of CTCF expression, with the result that both normal and immortal cells maintain the same average number of CTCF occupancy sites genome-wide. These results reveal a tight linkage between DNA methylation and the global occupancy patterns of a major sequence-specific regulatory factor.

Mapping and dynamics of regulatory DNA and transcription factor networks in A. thaliana.

Our understanding of gene regulation in plants is constrained by our limited knowledge of plant cis-regulatory DNA and its dynamics. We mapped DNase I hypersensitive sites (DHSs) in A. thaliana seedlings and used genomic footprinting to delineate ∼ 700,000 sites of in vivo transcription factor (TF) occupancy at nucleotide resolution. We show that variation associated with 72 diverse quantitative phenotypes localizes within DHSs. TF footprints encode an extensive cis-regulatory lexicon subject to recent evolutionary pressures, and widespread TF binding within exons may have shaped codon usage patterns. The architecture of A. thaliana TF regulatory networks is strikingly similar to that of animals in spite of diverged regulatory repertoires. We analyzed regulatory landscape dynamics during heat shock and photomorphogenesis, disclosing thousands of environmentally sensitive elements and enabling mapping of key TF regulatory circuits underlying these fundamental responses. Our results provide an extensive resource for the study of A. thaliana gene regulation and functional biology.

Familial neurofibromatosis 1 microdeletions: Cosegregation with distinct facial phenotype and early onset of cutaneous neurofibromata

A notable subset of the recent literature on the disorder neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) describes patients with NF1, facial anomalies, and other unusual findings. We describe a molecular re-evaluation of two such families reported previously by Kaplan and Rosenblatt [1985], who suggested that their NF1 manifestations, facial phenotype, and other findings could result from a disorder distinct from NF1. Submicroscopic deletions involving the NF1 gene were identified in both families by fluorescent in situ hybridization and analysis of somatic cell hybrids. Affected subjects of the first family were heterozygous for a microdeletion of approximately 2 Mb, which included the entire NF1 gene and flanking contiguous sequences. The family was remarkable for cosegregation of the NF1 microdeletion with facial abnormalities and a pattern of early onset of cutaneous neurofibromata upon transmission from an affected mother to her three affected children. The propositus of the second family carried a deletion that at the least involved NF1 exon 2 through intron 27, which is > 200 kilobases in length. Because all persons in the family were deceased, the size of the deletion could not be determined precisely. Facial anomalies were observed in the propositus and his NF1-affected mother and sister. The data from these families support our hypothesis, which was initially based solely on sporadic deletion cases, that deletion of the entire NF1 gene, or in conjunction with deletion of unknown contiguous genes, causes the facial anomalies and early onset of neurofibromata observed in this subset of NF1 patients. In addition, other features observed in the persons in these families suggest that some NF1 microdeletion patients may be at increased risk for connective tissue abnormalities and/or neoplasms.

Association of MTOR Mutations With Developmental Brain Disorders, Including Megalencephaly, Focal Cortical Dysplasia, and Pigmentary Mosaicism

IMPORTANCE Focal cortical dysplasia (FCD), hemimegalencephaly, and megalencephaly constitute a spectrum of malformations of cortical development with shared neuropathologic features. These disorders are associated with significant childhood morbidity and mortality. OBJECTIVE To identify the underlying molecular cause of FCD, hemimegalencephaly, and diffuse megalencephaly. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS Patients with FCD, hemimegalencephaly, or megalencephaly (mean age, 11.7 years; range, 2-32 years) were recruited from Pediatric Hospital A. Meyer, the University of Hong Kong, and Seattle Childrens Research Institute from June 2012 to June 2014. Whole-exome sequencing (WES) was performed on 8 children with FCD or hemimegalencephaly using standard-depth (50-60X) sequencing in peripheral samples (blood, saliva, or skin) from the affected child and their parents and deep (150-180X) sequencing in affected brain tissue. Targeted sequencing and WES were used to screen 93 children with molecularly unexplained diffuse or focal brain overgrowth. Histopathologic and functional assays of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase-AKT (serine/threonine kinase)-mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway activity in resected brain tissue and cultured neurons were performed to validate mutations. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Whole-exome sequencing and targeted sequencing identified variants associated with this spectrum of developmental brain disorders. RESULTS Low-level mosaic mutations of MTOR were identified in brain tissue in 4 children with FCD type 2a with alternative allele fractions ranging from 0.012 to 0.086. Intermediate-level mosaic mutation of MTOR (p.Thr1977Ile) was also identified in 3 unrelated children with diffuse megalencephaly and pigmentary mosaicism in skin. Finally, a constitutional de novo mutation of MTOR (p.Glu1799Lys) was identified in 3 unrelated children with diffuse megalencephaly and intellectual disability. Molecular and functional analysis in 2 children with FCD2a from whom multiple affected brain tissue samples were available revealed a mutation gradient with an epicenter in the most epileptogenic area. When expressed in cultured neurons, all MTOR mutations identified here drive constitutive activation of mTOR complex 1 and enlarged neuronal size. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE In this study, mutations of MTOR were associated with a spectrum of brain overgrowth phenotypes extending from FCD type 2a to diffuse megalencephaly, distinguished by different mutations and levels of mosaicism. These mutations may be sufficient to cause cellular hypertrophy in cultured neurons and may provide a demonstration of the pattern of mosaicism in brain and substantiate the link between mosaic mutations of MTOR and pigmentary mosaicism in skin.

Genome‐Scale Mapping of DNase I Hypersensitivity

DNase I-seq is a global and high-resolution method that uses the nonspecific endonuclease DNase I to map chromatin accessibility. These accessible regions, designated as DNase I hypersensitive sites (DHSs), define the regulatory features, (e.g., promoters, enhancers, insulators, and locus control regions) of complex genomes. In this unit, methods are described for nuclei isolation, digestion of nuclei with limiting concentrations of DNase I, and the biochemical fractionation of DNase I hypersensitive sites in preparation for high-throughput sequencing. DNase I-seq is an unbiased and robust method that is not predicated on an a priori understanding of regulatory patterns or chromatin features.