Gene Cascade Finder: A tool for identification of gene cascades and its application in Caenorhabditis elegans

PLoS One. 2019 Sep 10;14(9):e0215187. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0215187. eCollection 2019.

Abstract

Obtaining a comprehensive understanding of the gene regulatory networks, or gene cascades, involved in cell fate determination and cell lineage segregation in Caenorhabditis elegans is a long-standing challenge. Although RNA-sequencing (RNA-Seq) is a promising technique to resolve these questions, the bioinformatics tools to identify associated gene cascades from RNA-Seq data remain inadequate. To overcome these limitations, we developed Gene Cascade Finder (GCF) as a novel tool for building gene cascades by comparison of mutant and wild-type RNA-Seq data along with integrated information of protein-protein interactions, expression timing, and domains. Application of GCF to RNA-Seq data confirmed that SPN-4 and MEX-3 regulate the canonical Wnt pathway during embryonic development. Moreover, lin-35, hsp-3, and gpa-12 were found to be involved in MEX-1-dependent neurogenesis, and MEX-3 was found to control the gene cascade promoting neurogenesis through lin-35 and apl-1. Thus, GCF could be a useful tool for building gene cascades from RNA-Seq data.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Caenorhabditis elegans
  • Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins / genetics*
  • Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins / metabolism
  • Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental
  • Gene Regulatory Networks*
  • Genomics / methods*
  • Neurogenesis
  • Protein Interaction Maps*
  • Software*

Substances

  • Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins