ALBERT

Description: The global burden of atmospheric methane has been increasing over the past decade but the causes are not well understood. National inventory estimates from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) indicate no significant trend in US anthropogenic methane emissions from 2002 to present. Here we use satellite retrievals and surface observations of atmospheric methane to suggest that US methane emissions have increased by more than 30% over the 2002–2014 period. The trend is largest in the central part of the country but we cannot readily attribute it to any specific source type. This large increase in US methane emissions could account for 30–60% of the global growth of atmospheric methane seen in the past decade.

Description: CpG islands (CGIs) are prominent in the mammalian genome owing to their GC-rich base composition and high density of CpG dinucleotides. Most human gene promoters are embedded within CGIs that lack DNA methylation and coincide with sites of histone H3 lysine 4 trimethylation (H3K4me3), irrespective of transcriptional activity. In spite of these intriguing correlations, the functional significance of non-methylated CGI sequences with respect to chromatin structure and transcription is unknown. By performing a search for proteins that are common to all CGIs, here we show high enrichment for Cfp1, which selectively binds to non-methylated CpGs in vitro. Chromatin immunoprecipitation of a mono-allelically methylated CGI confirmed that Cfp1 specifically associates with non-methylated CpG sites in vivo. High throughput sequencing of Cfp1-bound chromatin identified a notable concordance with non-methylated CGIs and sites of H3K4me3 in the mouse brain. Levels of H3K4me3 at CGIs were markedly reduced in Cfp1-depleted cells, consistent with the finding that Cfp1 associates with the H3K4 methyltransferase Setd1 (refs 7, 8). To test whether non-methylated CpG-dense sequences are sufficient to establish domains of H3K4me3, we analysed artificial CpG clusters that were integrated into the mouse genome. Despite the absence of promoters, the insertions recruited Cfp1 and created new peaks of H3K4me3. The data indicate that a primary function of non-methylated CGIs is to genetically influence the local chromatin modification state by interaction with Cfp1 and perhaps other CpG-binding proteins.〈br /〉〈br /〉〈a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3730110/" target="_blank"〉〈img src="https://static.pubmed.gov/portal/portal3rc.fcgi/4089621/img/3977009" border="0"〉〈/a〉   〈a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3730110/" target="_blank"〉This paper as free author manuscript - peer-reviewed and accepted for publication〈/a〉〈br /〉〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Notes: 〈/span〉Thomson, John P -- Skene, Peter J -- Selfridge, Jim -- Clouaire, Thomas -- Guy, Jacky -- Webb, Shaun -- Kerr, Alastair R W -- Deaton, Aimee -- Andrews, Rob -- James, Keith D -- Turner, Daniel J -- Illingworth, Robert -- Bird, Adrian -- 079643/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 091580/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 098051/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- G0800026/Medical Research Council/United Kingdom -- Cancer Research UK/United Kingdom -- Medical Research Council/United Kingdom -- Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- England -- Nature. 2010 Apr 15;464(7291):1082-6. doi: 10.1038/nature08924.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Author address: 〈/span〉Wellcome Trust Centre for Cell Biology, Michael Swann Building, University of Edinburgh, Mayfield Road, Edinburgh EH9 3JR, UK.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Record origin:〈/span〉 〈a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20393567" target="_blank"〉PubMed〈/a〉

Description: Malaria elimination strategies require surveillance of the parasite population for genetic changes that demand a public health response, such as new forms of drug resistance. Here we describe methods for the large-scale analysis of genetic variation in Plasmodium falciparum by deep sequencing of parasite DNA obtained from the blood of patients with malaria, either directly or after short-term culture. Analysis of 86,158 exonic single nucleotide polymorphisms that passed genotyping quality control in 227 samples from Africa, Asia and Oceania provides genome-wide estimates of allele frequency distribution, population structure and linkage disequilibrium. By comparing the genetic diversity of individual infections with that of the local parasite population, we derive a metric of within-host diversity that is related to the level of inbreeding in the population. An open-access web application has been established for the exploration of regional differences in allele frequency and of highly differentiated loci in the P. falciparum genome.〈br /〉〈br /〉〈a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3738909/" target="_blank"〉〈img src="https://static.pubmed.gov/portal/portal3rc.fcgi/4089621/img/3977009" border="0"〉〈/a〉   〈a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3738909/" target="_blank"〉This paper as free author manuscript - peer-reviewed and accepted for publication〈/a〉〈br /〉〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Notes: 〈/span〉Manske, Magnus -- Miotto, Olivo -- Campino, Susana -- Auburn, Sarah -- Almagro-Garcia, Jacob -- Maslen, Gareth -- O'Brien, Jack -- Djimde, Abdoulaye -- Doumbo, Ogobara -- Zongo, Issaka -- Ouedraogo, Jean-Bosco -- Michon, Pascal -- Mueller, Ivo -- Siba, Peter -- Nzila, Alexis -- Borrmann, Steffen -- Kiara, Steven M -- Marsh, Kevin -- Jiang, Hongying -- Su, Xin-Zhuan -- Amaratunga, Chanaki -- Fairhurst, Rick -- Socheat, Duong -- Nosten, Francois -- Imwong, Mallika -- White, Nicholas J -- Sanders, Mandy -- Anastasi, Elisa -- Alcock, Dan -- Drury, Eleanor -- Oyola, Samuel -- Quail, Michael A -- Turner, Daniel J -- Ruano-Rubio, Valentin -- Jyothi, Dushyanth -- Amenga-Etego, Lucas -- Hubbart, Christina -- Jeffreys, Anna -- Rowlands, Kate -- Sutherland, Colin -- Roper, Cally -- Mangano, Valentina -- Modiano, David -- Tan, John C -- Ferdig, Michael T -- Amambua-Ngwa, Alfred -- Conway, David J -- Takala-Harrison, Shannon -- Plowe, Christopher V -- Rayner, Julian C -- Rockett, Kirk A -- Clark, Taane G -- Newbold, Chris I -- Berriman, Matthew -- MacInnis, Bronwyn -- Kwiatkowski, Dominic P -- 075491/Z/04/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 077012/Z/05/Z/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 082370/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 089275/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 090532/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 090532/Z/09/Z/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 090770/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 090770/Z/09/Z/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 092654/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 093956/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 098051/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 55005502/Howard Hughes Medical Institute/ -- G0600718/Medical Research Council/United Kingdom -- G19/9/Medical Research Council/United Kingdom -- Intramural NIH HHS/ -- England -- Nature. 2012 Jul 19;487(7407):375-9. doi: 10.1038/nature11174.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Author address: 〈/span〉Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SA, UK.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Record origin:〈/span〉 〈a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22722859" target="_blank"〉PubMed〈/a〉

Description: The concept of disease-specific chemotherapy was developed a century ago. Dyes and arsenical compounds that displayed selectivity against trypanosomes were central to this work, and the drugs that emerged remain in use for treating human African trypanosomiasis (HAT). The importance of understanding the mechanisms underlying selective drug action and resistance for the development of improved HAT therapies has been recognized, but these mechanisms have remained largely unknown. Here we use all five current HAT drugs for genome-scale RNA interference target sequencing (RIT-seq) screens in Trypanosoma brucei, revealing the transporters, organelles, enzymes and metabolic pathways that function to facilitate antitrypanosomal drug action. RIT-seq profiling identifies both known drug importers and the only known pro-drug activator, and links more than fifty additional genes to drug action. A bloodstream stage-specific invariant surface glycoprotein (ISG75) family mediates suramin uptake, and the AP1 adaptin complex, lysosomal proteases and major lysosomal transmembrane protein, as well as spermidine and N-acetylglucosamine biosynthesis, all contribute to suramin action. Further screens link ubiquinone availability to nitro-drug action, plasma membrane P-type H(+)-ATPases to pentamidine action, and trypanothione and several putative kinases to melarsoprol action. We also demonstrate a major role for aquaglyceroporins in pentamidine and melarsoprol cross-resistance. These advances in our understanding of mechanisms of antitrypanosomal drug efficacy and resistance will aid the rational design of new therapies and help to combat drug resistance, and provide unprecedented molecular insight into the mode of action of antitrypanosomal drugs.〈br /〉〈br /〉〈a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3303116/" target="_blank"〉〈img src="https://static.pubmed.gov/portal/portal3rc.fcgi/4089621/img/3977009" border="0"〉〈/a〉   〈a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3303116/" target="_blank"〉This paper as free author manuscript - peer-reviewed and accepted for publication〈/a〉〈br /〉〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Notes: 〈/span〉Alsford, Sam -- Eckert, Sabine -- Baker, Nicola -- Glover, Lucy -- Sanchez-Flores, Alejandro -- Leung, Ka Fai -- Turner, Daniel J -- Field, Mark C -- Berriman, Matthew -- Horn, David -- 085775/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 085775/Z/08/Z/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 090007/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 090007/Z/09/Z/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 093010/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 093010/Z/10/Z/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- England -- Nature. 2012 Jan 25;482(7384):232-6. doi: 10.1038/nature10771.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Author address: 〈/span〉London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Keppel Street, London, WC1E 7HT, UK.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Record origin:〈/span〉 〈a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22278056" target="_blank"〉PubMed〈/a〉

Description: Gorillas are humans' closest living relatives after chimpanzees, and are of comparable importance for the study of human origins and evolution. Here we present the assembly and analysis of a genome sequence for the western lowland gorilla, and compare the whole genomes of all extant great ape genera. We propose a synthesis of genetic and fossil evidence consistent with placing the human-chimpanzee and human-chimpanzee-gorilla speciation events at approximately 6 and 10 million years ago. In 30% of the genome, gorilla is closer to human or chimpanzee than the latter are to each other; this is rarer around coding genes, indicating pervasive selection throughout great ape evolution, and has functional consequences in gene expression. A comparison of protein coding genes reveals approximately 500 genes showing accelerated evolution on each of the gorilla, human and chimpanzee lineages, and evidence for parallel acceleration, particularly of genes involved in hearing. We also compare the western and eastern gorilla species, estimating an average sequence divergence time 1.75 million years ago, but with evidence for more recent genetic exchange and a population bottleneck in the eastern species. The use of the genome sequence in these and future analyses will promote a deeper understanding of great ape biology and evolution.〈br /〉〈br /〉〈a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3303130/" target="_blank"〉〈img src="https://static.pubmed.gov/portal/portal3rc.fcgi/4089621/img/3977009" border="0"〉〈/a〉   〈a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3303130/" target="_blank"〉This paper as free author manuscript - peer-reviewed and accepted for publication〈/a〉〈br /〉〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Notes: 〈/span〉Scally, Aylwyn -- Dutheil, Julien Y -- Hillier, LaDeana W -- Jordan, Gregory E -- Goodhead, Ian -- Herrero, Javier -- Hobolth, Asger -- Lappalainen, Tuuli -- Mailund, Thomas -- Marques-Bonet, Tomas -- McCarthy, Shane -- Montgomery, Stephen H -- Schwalie, Petra C -- Tang, Y Amy -- Ward, Michelle C -- Xue, Yali -- Yngvadottir, Bryndis -- Alkan, Can -- Andersen, Lars N -- Ayub, Qasim -- Ball, Edward V -- Beal, Kathryn -- Bradley, Brenda J -- Chen, Yuan -- Clee, Chris M -- Fitzgerald, Stephen -- Graves, Tina A -- Gu, Yong -- Heath, Paul -- Heger, Andreas -- Karakoc, Emre -- Kolb-Kokocinski, Anja -- Laird, Gavin K -- Lunter, Gerton -- Meader, Stephen -- Mort, Matthew -- Mullikin, James C -- Munch, Kasper -- O'Connor, Timothy D -- Phillips, Andrew D -- Prado-Martinez, Javier -- Rogers, Anthony S -- Sajjadian, Saba -- Schmidt, Dominic -- Shaw, Katy -- Simpson, Jared T -- Stenson, Peter D -- Turner, Daniel J -- Vigilant, Linda -- Vilella, Albert J -- Whitener, Weldon -- Zhu, Baoli -- Cooper, David N -- de Jong, Pieter -- Dermitzakis, Emmanouil T -- Eichler, Evan E -- Flicek, Paul -- Goldman, Nick -- Mundy, Nicholas I -- Ning, Zemin -- Odom, Duncan T -- Ponting, Chris P -- Quail, Michael A -- Ryder, Oliver A -- Searle, Stephen M -- Warren, Wesley C -- Wilson, Richard K -- Schierup, Mikkel H -- Rogers, Jane -- Tyler-Smith, Chris -- Durbin, Richard -- 062023/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 075491/Z/04/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 077009/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 077192/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 077198/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 089066/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 090532/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 095908/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- 15603/Cancer Research UK/United Kingdom -- 202218/European Research Council/International -- A15603/Cancer Research UK/United Kingdom -- G0501331/Medical Research Council/United Kingdom -- G0701805/Medical Research Council/United Kingdom -- HG002385/HG/NHGRI NIH HHS/ -- U54 HG003079/HG/NHGRI NIH HHS/ -- WT062023/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- WT077009/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- WT077192/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- WT077198/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- WT089066/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom -- Medical Research Council/United Kingdom -- Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council/United Kingdom -- Howard Hughes Medical Institute/ -- Intramural NIH HHS/ -- England -- Nature. 2012 Mar 7;483(7388):169-75. doi: 10.1038/nature10842.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Author address: 〈/span〉Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, Wellcome Trust Genome Campus, Hinxton CB10 1SA, UK.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Record origin:〈/span〉 〈a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22398555" target="_blank"〉PubMed〈/a〉

Description: The Ebola virus disease epidemic in West Africa is the largest on record, responsible for over 28,599 cases and more than 11,299 deaths. Genome sequencing in viral outbreaks is desirable to characterize the infectious agent and determine its evolutionary rate. Genome sequencing also allows the identification of signatures of host adaptation, identification and monitoring of diagnostic targets, and characterization of responses to vaccines and treatments. The Ebola virus (EBOV) genome substitution rate in the Makona strain has been estimated at between 0.87 x 10(-3) and 1.42 x 10(-3) mutations per site per year. This is equivalent to 16-27 mutations in each genome, meaning that sequences diverge rapidly enough to identify distinct sub-lineages during a prolonged epidemic. Genome sequencing provides a high-resolution view of pathogen evolution and is increasingly sought after for outbreak surveillance. Sequence data may be used to guide control measures, but only if the results are generated quickly enough to inform interventions. Genomic surveillance during the epidemic has been sporadic owing to a lack of local sequencing capacity coupled with practical difficulties transporting samples to remote sequencing facilities. To address this problem, here we devise a genomic surveillance system that utilizes a novel nanopore DNA sequencing instrument. In April 2015 this system was transported in standard airline luggage to Guinea and used for real-time genomic surveillance of the ongoing epidemic. We present sequence data and analysis of 142 EBOV samples collected during the period March to October 2015. We were able to generate results less than 24 h after receiving an Ebola-positive sample, with the sequencing process taking as little as 15-60 min. We show that real-time genomic surveillance is possible in resource-limited settings and can be established rapidly to monitor outbreaks.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Notes: 〈/span〉Quick, Joshua -- Loman, Nicholas J -- Duraffour, Sophie -- Simpson, Jared T -- Severi, Ettore -- Cowley, Lauren -- Bore, Joseph Akoi -- Koundouno, Raymond -- Dudas, Gytis -- Mikhail, Amy -- Ouedraogo, Nobila -- Afrough, Babak -- Bah, Amadou -- Baum, Jonathan H J -- Becker-Ziaja, Beate -- Boettcher, Jan Peter -- Cabeza-Cabrerizo, Mar -- Camino-Sanchez, Alvaro -- Carter, Lisa L -- Doerrbecker, Juliane -- Enkirch, Theresa -- Garcia-Dorival, Isabel -- Hetzelt, Nicole -- Hinzmann, Julia -- Holm, Tobias -- Kafetzopoulou, Liana Eleni -- Koropogui, Michel -- Kosgey, Abigael -- Kuisma, Eeva -- Logue, Christopher H -- Mazzarelli, Antonio -- Meisel, Sarah -- Mertens, Marc -- Michel, Janine -- Ngabo, Didier -- Nitzsche, Katja -- Pallasch, Elisa -- Patrono, Livia Victoria -- Portmann, Jasmine -- Repits, Johanna Gabriella -- Rickett, Natasha Y -- Sachse, Andreas -- Singethan, Katrin -- Vitoriano, Ines -- Yemanaberhan, Rahel L -- Zekeng, Elsa G -- Racine, Trina -- Bello, Alexander -- Sall, Amadou Alpha -- Faye, Ousmane -- Faye, Oumar -- Magassouba, N'Faly -- Williams, Cecelia V -- Amburgey, Victoria -- Winona, Linda -- Davis, Emily -- Gerlach, Jon -- Washington, Frank -- Monteil, Vanessa -- Jourdain, Marine -- Bererd, Marion -- Camara, Alimou -- Somlare, Hermann -- Camara, Abdoulaye -- Gerard, Marianne -- Bado, Guillaume -- Baillet, Bernard -- Delaune, Deborah -- Nebie, Koumpingnin Yacouba -- Diarra, Abdoulaye -- Savane, Yacouba -- Pallawo, Raymond Bernard -- Gutierrez, Giovanna Jaramillo -- Milhano, Natacha -- Roger, Isabelle -- Williams, Christopher J -- Yattara, Facinet -- Lewandowski, Kuiama -- Taylor, James -- Rachwal, Phillip -- Turner, Daniel J -- Pollakis, Georgios -- Hiscox, Julian A -- Matthews, David A -- O'Shea, Matthew K -- Johnston, Andrew McD -- Wilson, Duncan -- Hutley, Emma -- Smit, Erasmus -- Di Caro, Antonino -- Wolfel, Roman -- Stoecker, Kilian -- Fleischmann, Erna -- Gabriel, Martin -- Weller, Simon A -- Koivogui, Lamine -- Diallo, Boubacar -- Keita, Sakoba -- Rambaut, Andrew -- Formenty, Pierre -- Gunther, Stephan -- Carroll, Miles W -- Medical Research Council/United Kingdom -- England -- Nature. 2016 Feb 11;530(7589):228-32. doi: 10.1038/nature16996. Epub 2016 Feb 3.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Author address: 〈/span〉Institute of Microbiology and Infection, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK. ; The European Mobile Laboratory Consortium, Bernhard-Nocht-Institute for Tropical Medicine, D-20359 Hamburg, Germany. ; Bernhard-Nocht-Institute for Tropical Medicine, D-20359 Hamburg, Germany. ; Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, Toronto M5G 0A3, Canada. ; Department of Computer Science, University of Toronto, Toronto M5S 3G4, Canada. ; European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), 171 65 Solna, Sweden. ; National Infection Service, Public Health England, London NW9 5EQ, UK. ; Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 2FL, UK. ; Postgraduate Training for Applied Epidemiology (PAE, German FETP), Robert Koch Institute, D-13302 Berlin, Germany. ; National Infection Service, Public Health England, Porton Down, Wiltshire SP4 0JG, UK. ; Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, 4002 Basel, Switzerland. ; Robert Koch Institute, D-13302 Berlin, Germany. ; University College London, London WC1E 6BT, UK. ; Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, Division of Veterinary Medicine, D-63225 Langen, Germany. ; Institute of Infection and Global Health, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 7BE, UK. ; Laboratory for Clinical and Epidemiological Virology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, KU Leuven, Leuven B-3000, Belgium. ; Ministry of Health Guinea, Conakry BP 585, Guinea. ; Kenya Medical Research Institute, Nairobi P.O. BOX 54840 - 00200, Kenya. ; National Institute for Infectious Diseases L. Spallanzani, 00149 Rome, Italy. ; Friedrich-Loeffler-Institute, D-17493 Greifswald, Germany. ; Federal Office for Civil Protection, Spiez Laboratory, 3700 Spiez, Switzerland. ; Janssen-Cilag, Stockholm, Box 7073 - 19207, Sweden. ; NIHR Health Protection Research Unit in Emerging and Zoonotic Infections, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 7BE, UK. ; Institute of Virology, Technische Universitat Munchen, D-81675 Munich, Germany. ; Public Health Agency of Canada, Winnipeg, Manitoba R3E 3R2, Canada. ; Institut Pasteur Dakar, Dakar, DP 220 Senegal. ; Laboratoire de Fievres Hemorragiques de Guinee, Conakry BP 5680, Guinea. ; Sandia National Laboratories, PO Box 5800 MS1363, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87185-1363, USA. ; Ratoma Ebola Diagnostic Center, Conakry, Guinea. ; MRIGlobal, Kansas City, Missouri 64110-2241, USA. ; Expertise France, Laboratoire K-plan de Forecariah en Guinee, 75006 Paris, France. ; Federation des Laboratoires - HIA Begin, 94163 Saint-Mande cedex, France. ; Laboratoire de Biologie - Centre de Traitement des Soignants, Conakry, Guinea. ; World Health Organization, Conakry BP 817, Guinea. ; London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London EC1E 7HT, UK. ; Norwegian Institute of Public Health, PO Box 4404 Nydalen, 0403 Oslo, Norway. ; Public Health Wales, Cardiff CF11 9LJ, UK. ; Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) Porton Down, Salisbury SP4 0JQ, UK. ; Oxford Nanopore Technologies, Oxford OX4 4GA, UK. ; Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, School of Medical Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol BS8 1TD, UK. ; Academic Department of Military Medicine, Royal Centre for Defence Medicine, Birmingham B15 2TH, UK. ; Centre of Defence Pathology, Royal Centre for Defence Medicine, Birmingham B15 2TH, UK. ; Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham B12 2TH, UK. ; Bundeswehr Institute of Microbiology, D-80937 Munich, Germany. ; Institut National de Sante Publique, Conakry BP 1147, Guinea. ; Fogarty International Center, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-2220, USA. ; Centre for Immunology, Infection and Evolution, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 2FL, UK. ; University of Southampton, South General Hospital, Southampton SO16 6YD, UK. ; NIHR Health Protection Research Unit in Emerging and Zoonotic Infections, PHE Porton Down, UK.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Record origin:〈/span〉 〈a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26840485" target="_blank"〉PubMed〈/a〉

Description: Ion channels form the basis for cellular electrical signaling. Despite the scores of genetically identified ion channels selective for other monatomic ions, only one type of proton-selective ion channel has been found in eukaryotic cells. By comparative transcriptome analysis of mouse taste receptor cells, we identified Otopetrin1 (OTOP1), a protein required for development of gravity-sensing otoconia in the vestibular system, as forming a proton-selective ion channel. We found that murine OTOP1 is enriched in acid-detecting taste receptor cells and is required for their zinc-sensitive proton conductance. Two related murine genes, Otop2 and Otop3 , and a Drosophila ortholog also encode proton channels. Evolutionary conservation of the gene family and its widespread tissue distribution suggest a broad role for proton channels in physiology and pathophysiology.