Smarajit Das

Identity elements of archaeal tRNA.

Features unique to a transfer-RNA are recognized by the corresponding tRNA-synthetase. Keeping this in view we isolate the discriminating features of all archaeal tRNA. These are our identity elements. Further, we investigate tRNA-characteristics that delineate the different orders of Archaea.

HNOCDB: A comprehensive database of genes and miRNAs relevant to head and neck and oral cancer

In spite of the wide prevalence of head, neck and oral cancer, HNOC, there is no integrated database on genes and miRNAs associated with all the carcinoma subtypes of HNOC. The objective is to compile a multilayered and comprehensive database of HNOC as a user-friendly resource for researchers devising novel therapeutic strategies. We present HNOCDB, the head, neck and oral cancer database, with the following key features: (i) it tabulates all the different categories of HNOC separately under appropriate subtype-names, and then puts them together in a table headlined All; (ii) the oncogenes/oncomiRs that cause HNOC are listed; their mutations, methylations and polymorphisms loci are marked, and the variations in their expression profiles relative to the normal are recorded; (iii) HNOCDB contains a chromosomal map of HNOC genes and miRNA; (iv) contains references that experimentally validate the reason for the inclusion of the genes and the miRNAs in HNOCDB. HNOCDB is freely accessible for academic and non-profit users via http://gyanxet.com/hno.html.

Anomalous altered expressions of downstream gene-targets in TP53-miRNA pathways in head and neck cancer

The prevalence of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, HNSCC, continues to grow. Change in the expression of TP53 in HNSCC affects its downstream miRNAs and their gene targets, anomalously altering the expressions of the five genes, MEIS1, AGTR1, DTL, TYMS and BAK1. These expression alterations follow the repression of TP53 that upregulates miRNA-107, miRNA- 215, miRNA-34 b/c and miRNA-125b, but downregulates miRNA-155. The above five so far unreported genes are the targets of these miRNAs. Meta-analyses of microarray and RNA-Seq data followed by qRT-PCR validation unravel these new ones in HNSCC. The regulatory roles of TP53 on miRNA-155 and miRNA-125b differentiate the expressions of AGTR1 and BAK1in HNSCC vis-à-vis other carcinogenesis. Expression changes alter cell cycle regulation, angiogenic and blood cell formation, and apoptotic modes in affliction. Pathway analyses establish the resulting systems-level functional and mechanistic insights into the etiology of HNSCC.

tRNA-isoleucine-tryptophan composite gene.

Transfer-RNA genes in archaea often have introns intervening between exon sequences. The structural motif at the boundary between exon and intron is the bulge-helix-bulge. Computational investigations of these boundary structures in Haloarcula marismortui lead us to propose that tRNA-isoleucine and tRNA-tryptophan genes are co-located. Precise in silico identification of the splice-sites on the bulges at the exon-intron boundaries lead us to infer that a single intron-containing composite tRNA-gene can give rise to more than one gene product.

Structural clones of UAG decoding RNA.

Abstract Functions of non-coding RNAs are related in part to their secondary structures. We investigate the uniqueness of the secondary structure of a non-coding RNA (ncRNA) decoding UAG to read pyrrolysine (pyl). Nineteen archaeal methanogens are searched with our tRNA-pyl-tracker, TPYLT, perl-script downloadable from www.gyanxet.com. We observe that aside from the usual pyl-gene-cluster, pyl-carrying Methanosarcinaceae have a good number of conjugate-halves from pyl-tRNA (pylT) gene split at 37/38 spread over their genomes. On insilico ligation, the secondary structures of these pairs clone the clover-leaf of pylT of M. barkeri. Of these nineteen methanogens, four, namely, M. stadtmanae, M. kandleri, M. hungatei, and M. thermautotrophicus, have these pairs at levels at or higher than in the pyl-carrying ones. Screening these we arrive at four pairs, i.e., one from each of these four genomes. On ligation, these are close homologs of pylT gene of M. barkeri. The intervening sequences between the split pairs in these four cases are shown to nearly reproduce the known secondary structures at exon-intron boundaries.

A new measure to study phylogenetic relations in the brown algal order Ectocarpales: the "codon impact parameter".

We analyse forty-seven chloroplast genes of the large subunit of RuBisCO, from the algal order Ectocarpales, sourced from GenBank. Codon-usage weighted by the nucleotide base-bias defines our score called the codon-impact-parameter. This score is used to obtain phylogenetic relations amongst the 47 Ectocarpales. We compare our classification with the ones done earlier.

Novel Hybrid Encodes both Continuous and Split tRNA Genes

Abstract tRNAs are mostly transcribed from un-fragmented genes, but occasionally also from split genes, with separated 5′ and 3′ halves. A reanalysis of the existing data on Staphylothermus marinus and Staphylothermus hellenicus hints of a novel hybrid gene that encodes both an un-fragmented and a 5′-split-half together in one. The corresponding 3′-complementgene is located elsewhere on the genome. As un-fragmented, the hybrid gene transcribes to tRNAlys(TTT). But as 5′-half, it trans-splices with its 3′-complement-half to tRNAlys(CTT), the tRNA missed so far. This hybrid of the split and the un-fragmented in one suggests a deeper synergy between the two, and hints of co-evolution. Furthermore, in a subtle contrast to the widely held idea of conservation of 3′-half, it is precisely the 3′-half that varies in these two tRNAs; the 5′-half remains conserved.