Members of our group involved in recent collaborative projects
Michelle Scott and Sherif Abou Elela
Our groups investigate the biogenesis/functions of small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs) using molecular biology, high-throughput transcriptomics and bioinformatics approaches. SnoRNAs have been well characterized as playing a role in ribosome biogenesis, but in recent years, diverse novel functions have also emerged, including in the regulation of splicing and transcript stability. Using protein depletions and our novel high-throughput sequencing approach and analysis pipeline, we are determining the proteins important for snoRNA biogenesis and function. We are also investigating the role of snoRNAs in ovarian cancer. We currently have several co-supervised students (Delong Zhou, Melodie Berthoumieux, Vincent Boivin) and two joint grants.
Deschamps-Francoeur G, Garneau D, Dupuis-Sandoval F, Roy A, Frappier M, Catala M, Couture S, Barbe-Marcoux M, Abou-Elela S, Scott MS. (2014) Identification of discrete classes of small nucleolar RNA featuring different ends and RNA binding protein dependency. Nucl. Acids Res ( link to pubmed: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25074380 )
Jean-Pierre Perreault and Michelle Scott
Co-supervised PhD student Jean-Michel Garant
Garant JM, Luce MJ, Scott MS, Perreault JP. (2015) G4RNA: an RNA G-quadruplex database. Database (Oxford) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26200754
Michelle Scott and François Bachand
Nguyen D, Grenier St-Sauveur V, Bergeron D, Dupuis-Sandoval F, Scott MS, Bachand F. (2015)
A Polyadenylation-Dependent 3′ End Maturation Pathway Is Required for the Synthesis of the Human Telomerase RNA. Cell Rep. 13:2244-57.
Jean-Pierre Perreault and Martin Bisaillon
A. Dubé, T. Baumstark, M. Bisaillon and J. P. Perreault (2010). The RNA strands of the plus and minus polarities of Peach latent mosaic viroid fold into different structures. RNA 16:463-473
A. Dubé, F. Bolduc, M. Bisaillon and J. P. Perreault (2011). Mapping studies of the Peach latent mosaïc viroid reveal novel structutal features. Mol. Plant Pathol: 12:688-701 Selected among the five best paper of the year.
S. G. Rouleau, R. Jodoin, M. Bisaillon and J.P. Perreault (2012). Programming a highly structured ribozyme into complex allostery using RNA oligonucleotides. ACS Chemical Biology 16:1802-1806
S. Rouleau, J. D. Beaudoin, M. Bisaillon and J. P. Perreault (2015). Small antisense oligonucleotides against G-quadrulexes : specific mRNA translational switches. Nucleic Acids Research 43 : 593-606
Benoit Chabot and Sherif Abou Elela
In spite of its imposing biological relevance and undeniable role in human diseases, tissue-specific annotation of alternative splicing (AS) has not been done systematically and very little is known about the individual functions of splice isoforms. While expression profiling of cancer has provided clues about key genes involved in tumourigenesis, there is clearly a need for new investigations that will map with more precision the topology of this disease, link disease-specific gene expression patterns to oncogenic function, and offer new avenues for diagnosis, treatments and follow-up. Several projects focus not only on the discovery of AS variants to be used as biomarkers for the recurrence of cancer, but also on the identification of functionally relevant forms that can offer therapeutic value. Our research program also provides a systematic approach towards understanding the fundamental principles responsible for alternative splicing dysfunction in cancer.Alternative splicing studies in breast and ovarian cancer. During the last 5 years we made important progress in understanding the role of alternative splicing in the biology of breast and ovarian cancer by uncovering a multitude of cancer-associated variants, some of which required for cancer cell viability in vitro. Our main discoveries have been to uncover a well-defined cancer-dependent regulatory network and a clear link between AS and cell survival. Our work generated a large number of potential cancer markers and opened the way for in depth analysis. We have built a team with considerable expertise in variant analysis, established platforms to monitor alternatively splicing events (ASEs), their regulatory factors, and perform phenotypic assessment.
Prinos, P., Garneau, D., Lucier, J.F., Gendron, D., Couture, S., Boivin, M., Brosseau, J.P., Lapointe, E., Thibault, P., Durand, M., Tremblay, K., Gervais-Bird, J., Nwilati, H., Klinck, R., Chabot, B., Perreault, J.P., Wellinger, R.J., Abou Elela, S. (2011). Alternative splicing of SYK regulates mitosis and cell survival. Nat. Struct. Mol. Biol. 18:673-679. Primée au Palmarès scientifique 2011 de la Société Canadienne du Cancer.
Tanackovic G, Ransijn A, Thibault P, Abou Elela S, Klinck R, Berson EL, Chabot B, Rivolta C. (2011). PRPF mutations are associated with generalized defects in spliceosome formation and pre-mRNA splicing in patients with retinitis pigmentosa. Hum Mol Genet. 20:2116-30. doi: 10.1093/hmg/ddr094.
Klinck, R., Chabot, B., Abou Elela, S. (2011) High-throughput RT-PCR. In “RNA splicing: The complete guide“, edited by S. Stamm, C. Smith and R. Lührmann. Wiley-VCH.
Michelle, L., Cloutier, A., Toutant, J., Shkreta, L., Thibault, P., Durand, M., Garneau, D., Gendron, D., Lapointe, E., Couture, S., Le Hir, H., Klinck, R., Abou Elela, S., Prinos, P. and Chabot, B. (2012). EJC components modulate the alternative splicing of Bcl-x and other apoptotic genes. Mol. Cell. Biol. 32:954-967.
Prinos, P., Klinck, R., Venables, J.P., Perreault, J.P., Wellinger, R.J., Abou Elela, S. and Chabot, B. (2012). Alternative splicing as a generator of functional diversity in cancer. MSA 1(4):151-165 [In French]
Lund N, Milev MP, Wong R, Sanmuganantham T, Woolaway K, Chabot B, Abou Elela S, Mouland AJ, Cochrane A. (2012). Differential effects of hnRNP D/AUF1 isoforms on HIV-1 gene expression. Nucl. Acids Res. Apr;40(8):3663-75. doi: 10.1093/nar/gkr1238.
Venables, J.P., Brosseau, J.P., Gadea, G., Klinck, R., Prinos, P., Beaulieu, J.F., Lapointe, E., Durand, M., Thibault, P., Tremblay, K., Rousset, F., Tazi, J., Abou Elela, S. and Chabot, B. (2013). RBFOX2 is an important regulator of mesenchymal-specific splicing in both normal and cancer tissues. Mol. Cell. Biol. 33:396-405.
Venables, J.P., Lapasset, L., Gadea, G., Fort, P., Klinck, R., Irimia, M., Vignal, E., Prinos, P., Chabot, B., Abou Elela, S., Roux, P., Lemaitre, J.M. and Tazi, J. (2013). MBNL1 and RBFOX2 cooperate to change a splicing program involved in pluripotent stem cell differentiation. Nature Comm. 4:2480 doi: 10.1038/ncomms3480.
Brosseau, J.P., Lucier, J.F., Lamarche, A.A, Shkreta, L., Lapointe, E., Couture, S., Thibault, P., Gendron, D., Paquet, E., Perreault, J.P., Abou Elela, S. and Chabot, B. (2014). Redirecting splicing with bifunctional oligonucleotides. Nucl. Acids Res. 42(6):e40. Covered in Biotechniques. http://www.biotechniques.com/news/Snipping-and-Knitting-in-All-the-Right-Places/biotechniques-351323.html#.U1A488fxshl
Brosseau, J.P., Lucier, J.F., Nwilati, H., Thibault, P., Garneau, D., Durand, M., Couture, S., Lapointe, E., Prinos, P., Klinck, R., Perreault, J.P., Chabot, B. and Abou Elela, S. (2014). Tumor microenvironment associated modifications of alternative splicing. RNA. 20:189-201.
Parenteau, J., Durand, M., Morin, G., Gagnon, J., Lucier, J.F., Wellinger, R.J., Chabot, B. and Abou Elela, S. (2011). Introns regulate the production and functional specificity of yeast ribosomes. Cell 147:320-331.
Martin Bisaillon, Jean-Pierre Perreault and Michelle Scott
The M. Scott, J.P. Perreault, and M. Bisaillon labs are currently collaborating on various projects related to cancer-inducing viruses. Worldwide, these viruses are estimated to cause 15 to 20% of all cancers in humans. In many cases, the exact mechanism by which these viruses cause cancer remains largely unexplored. RNA splicing is a post-transcriptional event involved in the maturation of nearly all messenger RNAs (mRNAs). Recent studies indicate that almost every human gene can produce different mRNAs isoforms through alternative splicing (AS) to produce several different protein isoforms. Interestingly, perturbations in alternative splicing are common and extensive in cancer, and can significantly affect cancer development and maintenance. The role of AS in the expression of oncogenes and tumor suppressors has also attracted considerable interest since variants of these genes are often found specifically in tumors from diverse tissues. During the past few years, AS variants have been identified for a large number of cancer genes and can now be used as specific biomarkers.
The general objective of our various research projects is to investigate the ability of various viruses to modify the AS of cellular mRNAs, with a strong emphasis on genes involved in cancer. Overall, we expect to uncover novel biomarkers for various cancers. Phenotypic assays will allow us to demonstrate the functional consequences of altering specific AS events, thereby paving the way to novel anti-cancer therapeutic avenues that could be used in personalized medicine.
Boudreault S, Martenon-Brodeur C, Caron M, Garant JM, Tremblay MP, Armero VE, Durand M, Lapointe E, Thibault P, Tremblay-Létourneau M, Perreault JP, Scott MS, Lemay G, Bisaillon M. (2016) Global Profiling of the Cellular Alternative RNA Splicing Landscape during Virus-Host Interactions. PLoS ONE. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27598998
Tremblay MP, Armero VE, Allaire A, Boudreault S, Martenon-Brodeur C, Durand M, Lapointe E, Thibault P, Tremblay-Létourneau M, Perreault JP, Scott MS, Bisaillon M. (2016) Global profiling of alternative RNA splicing events provides insights into molecular differences between various types of hepatocellular carcinoma. BMC Genomics. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27565572
Sherif Abou Elela and Daniel Lafontaine
Comeau MA, Lafontaine DA, Abou Elela S. (2016) The catalytic efficiency of yeast ribonuclease III depends on substrate specific product release rate. Nucl. Acids Res. (16):7911-21. doi: 10.1093/nar/gkw507.
Sherif Abou Elela and Jean-Pierre Perreault
Bergeron L Jr, Perreault JP, Abou Elela S. (2010) Short RNA duplexes guide sequence-dependent cleavage by human Dicer. RNA. Dec;16(12):2464-73. doi: 10.1261/rna.2346510.
Brosseau JP, Lucier JF, Lapointe E, Durand M, Gendron D, Gervais-Bird J, Tremblay K, Perreault JP, Elela SA. (2010) High-throughput quantification of splicing isoforms. RNA. Feb;16(2):442-9. doi: 10.1261/rna.1877010.
Raymund Wellinger and Sherif Abou Elela
Dionne I, Larose S, Dandjinou AT, Abou Elela S, Wellinger RJ. (2013) Cell cycle-dependent transcription factors control the expression of yeast telomerase RNA. RNA. 2013 Jul;19(7):992-1002. doi: 10.1261/rna.037663.112.PMID: 23690630
Noël JF, Larose S, Abou Elela S, Wellinger RJ. (2012) Budding yeast telomerase RNA transcription termination is dictated by the Nrd1/Nab3 non-coding RNA termination pathway. Nucl. Acids Res. 2012 Jul;40(12):5625-36. doi: 10.1093/nar/gks200.
Parenteau, J., Durand, M., Morin, G., Gagnon, J., Lucier, J.F., Wellinger, R.J., Chabot, B. and Abou Elela, S. (2011). Introns regulate the production and functional specificity of yeast ribosomes. Cell 147:320-331. Recommended by F1000. One of the 10th scientific discoveries of the year in Quebec recognized by Québec-Science.
Raymund Wellinger and Benoit Chabot
Patry, C, Lemieux, B., Wellinger, R. and Chabot, B. (2004). Targeting hnRNP A1 and A2 by RNA interference promotes cell death in transformed but not normal mouse cell lines. Mol. Cancer Ther. 3(10):1193-1199.
Lemieux, B., Blanchette, M., Monette, A., Mouland, A.J., Wellinger, R.J. and Chabot, B. (2015). A function for hnRNP A1 and A2 in transcription elongation. PLoS One. 10(5):e0126654. PMID: 26011126.
Raymund Wellinger and Daniel Lafontaine
Laterreur N, Eschbach SH, Lafontaine DA, Wellinger RJ. (2013) A new telomerase RNA element that is critical for telomere elongation. Nucl. Acids Res. 2013 Sep;41(16):7713-24. doi: 10.1093/nar/gkt514. Epub 2013 Jun 19.
Benoit Chabot and François Bachand
Bergeron, D., Pal, G., Beaulieu, Y.B., Chabot, B. and Bachand, F. (2015). Regulated intron retention and nuclear pre-mRNA decay contribute to PABPN1 autoregulation. Mol. Cell. Biol. 35(14) 2503-17. PMID: 25963658.
Brendan Bell and Benoit Chabot
Shkreta, L., Bell, B., Revil, T., Venables, J.P., Prinos, P., Abou Elela, S. and Chabot, B. (2013). Cancer-associated perturbations in alternative pre-messenger RNA splicing. Cancer Treat Res. 158: 41-94.
Shkreta, L., Blanchette, M., Toutant, J., Wilhem, E., Bell, B., Story, B.A., Cochrane, A., Balachandran, A., Cheung, P.K., Harrigan, P.R., Grierson, D. and Chabot, B. (2016). Modulation of the splicing regulatory function of SRSF10 by a novel compound that impairs HIV-1 replication. Nucl. Acids Res. doi: 10.1093/nar/gkw1223 PMID : 27928057
Eric Massé and Daniel Lafontaine
Lalaouna D, Simoneau-Roy M, Lafontaine D, Massé E. (2013). Regulatory RNAs and target mRNA decay in prokaryotes. Biochim Biophys Acta. 2013 Jun-Jul;1829(6-7):742-7.PMID: 23500183
Caron MP, Bastet L, Lussier A, Simoneau-Roy M, Massé E, Lafontaine DA. (2012). Dual-acting riboswitch control of translation initiation and mRNA decay. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 109(50):E3444-53. PMID: 23169642
Bastet L, Dubé A, Massé E, Lafontaine DA. (2011). New insights into riboswitch regulation mechanisms. Mol Microbiol. 80(5):1148-54. PMID:21477128
Lemay JF, Desnoyers G, Blouin S, Heppell B, Bastet L, St-Pierre P, Massé E, Lafontaine DA. (2011). Comparative study between transcriptionally- and translationally-acting adenine riboswitches reveals key differences in riboswitch regulatory mechanisms. PLoS Genet. 7(1):e1001278.
Members of our group involved in recent collaborative projects
Michelle Scott & Sherif Abou Elela
Our groups investigate the biogenesis/functions of small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs) using molecular biology, high-throughput transcriptomics and bioinformatics approaches. SnoRNAs have been well characterized as playing a role in ribosome biogenesis, but in recent years, diverse novel functions have also emerged, including in the regulation of splicing and transcript stability. Using protein depletions and our novel high-throughput sequencing approach and analysis pipeline, we are determining the proteins important for snoRNA biogenesis and function. We are also investigating the role of snoRNAs in ovarian cancer. We currently have several co-supervised students (Delong Zhou, Melodie Berthoumieux, Vincent Boivin) and two joint grants.
Deschamps-Francoeur G, Garneau D, Dupuis-Sandoval F, Roy A, Frappier M, Catala M, Couture S, Barbe-Marcoux M, Abou-Elela S, Scott MS. (2014) Identification of discrete classes of small nucleolar RNA featuring different ends and RNA binding protein dependency. Nucl. Acids Res ( link to pubmed: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25074380 )
Jean-Pierre Perreault & Michelle Scott
Co-supervised PhD student Jean-Michel Garant
Garant JM, Luce MJ, Scott MS, Perreault JP. (2015) G4RNA: an RNA G-quadruplex database. Database (Oxford) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26200754
Michelle Scott & François Bachand
Nguyen D, Grenier St-Sauveur V, Bergeron D, Dupuis-Sandoval F, Scott MS, Bachand F. (2015)
A Polyadenylation-Dependent 3′ End Maturation Pathway Is Required for the Synthesis of the Human Telomerase RNA. Cell Rep. 13:2244-57.
Jean-Pierre Perreault & Martin Bisaillon
A. Dubé, T. Baumstark, M. Bisaillon and J. P. Perreault (2010). The RNA strands of the plus and minus polarities of Peach latent mosaic viroid fold into different structures. RNA 16:463-473
A. Dubé, F. Bolduc, M. Bisaillon and J. P. Perreault (2011). Mapping studies of the Peach latent mosaïc viroid reveal novel structutal features. Mol. Plant Pathol: 12:688-701 Selected among the five best paper of the year.
S. G. Rouleau, R. Jodoin, M. Bisaillon and J.P. Perreault (2012). Programming a highly structured ribozyme into complex allostery using RNA oligonucleotides. ACS Chemical Biology 16:1802-1806
S. Rouleau, J. D. Beaudoin, M. Bisaillon and J. P. Perreault (2015). Small antisense oligonucleotides against G-quadrulexes : specific mRNA translational switches. Nucleic Acids Research 43 : 593-606
Benoit Chabot & Sherif Abou Elela
In spite of its imposing biological relevance and undeniable role in human diseases, tissue-specific annotation of alternative splicing (AS) has not been done systematically and very little is known about the individual functions of splice isoforms. While expression profiling of cancer has provided clues about key genes involved in tumourigenesis, there is clearly a need for new investigations that will map with more precision the topology of this disease, link disease-specific gene expression patterns to oncogenic function, and offer new avenues for diagnosis, treatments and follow-up. Several projects focus not only on the discovery of AS variants to be used as biomarkers for the recurrence of cancer, but also on the identification of functionally relevant forms that can offer therapeutic value. Our research program also provides a systematic approach towards understanding the fundamental principles responsible for alternative splicing dysfunction in cancer.Alternative splicing studies in breast and ovarian cancer. During the last 5 years we made important progress in understanding the role of alternative splicing in the biology of breast and ovarian cancer by uncovering a multitude of cancer-associated variants, some of which required for cancer cell viability in vitro. Our main discoveries have been to uncover a well-defined cancer-dependent regulatory network and a clear link between AS and cell survival. Our work generated a large number of potential cancer markers and opened the way for in depth analysis. We have built a team with considerable expertise in variant analysis, established platforms to monitor alternatively splicing events (ASEs), their regulatory factors, and perform phenotypic assessment.
Prinos, P., Garneau, D., Lucier, J.F., Gendron, D., Couture, S., Boivin, M., Brosseau, J.P., Lapointe, E., Thibault, P., Durand, M., Tremblay, K., Gervais-Bird, J., Nwilati, H., Klinck, R., Chabot, B., Perreault, J.P., Wellinger, R.J., Abou Elela, S. (2011). Alternative splicing of SYK regulates mitosis and cell survival. Nat. Struct. Mol. Biol. 18:673-679. Primée au Palmarès scientifique 2011 de la Société Canadienne du Cancer.
Tanackovic G, Ransijn A, Thibault P, Abou Elela S, Klinck R, Berson EL, Chabot B, Rivolta C. (2011). PRPF mutations are associated with generalized defects in spliceosome formation and pre-mRNA splicing in patients with retinitis pigmentosa. Hum Mol Genet. 20:2116-30. doi: 10.1093/hmg/ddr094.
Klinck, R., Chabot, B., Abou Elela, S. (2011) High-throughput RT-PCR. In “RNA splicing: The complete guide“, edited by S. Stamm, C. Smith and R. Lührmann. Wiley-VCH.
Michelle, L., Cloutier, A., Toutant, J., Shkreta, L., Thibault, P., Durand, M., Garneau, D., Gendron, D., Lapointe, E., Couture, S., Le Hir, H., Klinck, R., Abou Elela, S., Prinos, P. and Chabot, B. (2012). EJC components modulate the alternative splicing of Bcl-x and other apoptotic genes. Mol. Cell. Biol. 32:954-967.
Prinos, P., Klinck, R., Venables, J.P., Perreault, J.P., Wellinger, R.J., Abou Elela, S. and Chabot, B. (2012). Alternative splicing as a generator of functional diversity in cancer. MSA 1(4):151-165 [In French]
Lund N, Milev MP, Wong R, Sanmuganantham T, Woolaway K, Chabot B, Abou Elela S, Mouland AJ, Cochrane A. (2012). Differential effects of hnRNP D/AUF1 isoforms on HIV-1 gene expression. Nucl. Acids Res. Apr;40(8):3663-75. doi: 10.1093/nar/gkr1238.
Venables, J.P., Brosseau, J.P., Gadea, G., Klinck, R., Prinos, P., Beaulieu, J.F., Lapointe, E., Durand, M., Thibault, P., Tremblay, K., Rousset, F., Tazi, J., Abou Elela, S. and Chabot, B. (2013). RBFOX2 is an important regulator of mesenchymal-specific splicing in both normal and cancer tissues. Mol. Cell. Biol. 33:396-405.
Venables, J.P., Lapasset, L., Gadea, G., Fort, P., Klinck, R., Irimia, M., Vignal, E., Prinos, P., Chabot, B., Abou Elela, S., Roux, P., Lemaitre, J.M. and Tazi, J. (2013). MBNL1 and RBFOX2 cooperate to change a splicing program involved in pluripotent stem cell differentiation. Nature Comm. 4:2480 doi: 10.1038/ncomms3480.
Brosseau, J.P., Lucier, J.F., Lamarche, A.A, Shkreta, L., Lapointe, E., Couture, S., Thibault, P., Gendron, D., Paquet, E., Perreault, J.P., Abou Elela, S. and Chabot, B. (2014). Redirecting splicing with bifunctional oligonucleotides. Nucl. Acids Res. 42(6):e40. Covered in Biotechniques. http://www.biotechniques.com/news/Snipping-and-Knitting-in-All-the-Right-Places/biotechniques-351323.html#.U1A488fxshl
Brosseau, J.P., Lucier, J.F., Nwilati, H., Thibault, P., Garneau, D., Durand, M., Couture, S., Lapointe, E., Prinos, P., Klinck, R., Perreault, J.P., Chabot, B. and Abou Elela, S. (2014). Tumor microenvironment associated modifications of alternative splicing. RNA. 20:189-201.
Parenteau, J., Durand, M., Morin, G., Gagnon, J., Lucier, J.F., Wellinger, R.J., Chabot, B. and Abou Elela, S. (2011). Introns regulate the production and functional specificity of yeast ribosomes. Cell 147:320-331.
Martin Bisaillon, Jean-Pierre Perreault & Michelle Scott
The M. Scott, J.P. Perreault, and M. Bisaillon labs are currently collaborating on various projects related to cancer-inducing viruses. Worldwide, these viruses are estimated to cause 15 to 20% of all cancers in humans. In many cases, the exact mechanism by which these viruses cause cancer remains largely unexplored. RNA splicing is a post-transcriptional event involved in the maturation of nearly all messenger RNAs (mRNAs). Recent studies indicate that almost every human gene can produce different mRNAs isoforms through alternative splicing (AS) to produce several different protein isoforms. Interestingly, perturbations in alternative splicing are common and extensive in cancer, and can significantly affect cancer development and maintenance. The role of AS in the expression of oncogenes and tumor suppressors has also attracted considerable interest since variants of these genes are often found specifically in tumors from diverse tissues. During the past few years, AS variants have been identified for a large number of cancer genes and can now be used as specific biomarkers.
The general objective of our various research projects is to investigate the ability of various viruses to modify the AS of cellular mRNAs, with a strong emphasis on genes involved in cancer. Overall, we expect to uncover novel biomarkers for various cancers. Phenotypic assays will allow us to demonstrate the functional consequences of altering specific AS events, thereby paving the way to novel anti-cancer therapeutic avenues that could be used in personalized medicine.
Boudreault S, Martenon-Brodeur C, Caron M, Garant JM, Tremblay MP, Armero VE, Durand M, Lapointe E, Thibault P, Tremblay-Létourneau M, Perreault JP, Scott MS, Lemay G, Bisaillon M. (2016) Global Profiling of the Cellular Alternative RNA Splicing Landscape during Virus-Host Interactions. PLoS ONE. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27598998
Tremblay MP, Armero VE, Allaire A, Boudreault S, Martenon-Brodeur C, Durand M, Lapointe E, Thibault P, Tremblay-Létourneau M, Perreault JP, Scott MS, Bisaillon M. (2016) Global profiling of alternative RNA splicing events provides insights into molecular differences between various types of hepatocellular carcinoma. BMC Genomics. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27565572
Sherif Abou Elela & Daniel Lafontaine
Comeau MA, Lafontaine DA, Abou Elela S. (2016) The catalytic efficiency of yeast ribonuclease III depends on substrate specific product release rate. Nucl. Acids Res. (16):7911-21. doi: 10.1093/nar/gkw507.
Sherif Abou Elela & Jean-Pierre Perreault
Bergeron L Jr, Perreault JP, Abou Elela S. (2010) Short RNA duplexes guide sequence-dependent cleavage by human Dicer. RNA. Dec;16(12):2464-73. doi: 10.1261/rna.2346510.
Brosseau JP, Lucier JF, Lapointe E, Durand M, Gendron D, Gervais-Bird J, Tremblay K, Perreault JP, Elela SA. (2010) High-throughput quantification of splicing isoforms. RNA. Feb;16(2):442-9. doi: 10.1261/rna.1877010.
Raymund Wellinger & Sherif Abou Elela
Dionne I, Larose S, Dandjinou AT, Abou Elela S, Wellinger RJ. (2013) Cell cycle-dependent transcription factors control the expression of yeast telomerase RNA. RNA. 2013 Jul;19(7):992-1002. doi: 10.1261/rna.037663.112.PMID: 23690630
Noël JF, Larose S, Abou Elela S, Wellinger RJ. (2012) Budding yeast telomerase RNA transcription termination is dictated by the Nrd1/Nab3 non-coding RNA termination pathway. Nucl. Acids Res. 2012 Jul;40(12):5625-36. doi: 10.1093/nar/gks200.
Parenteau, J., Durand, M., Morin, G., Gagnon, J., Lucier, J.F., Wellinger, R.J., Chabot, B. and Abou Elela, S. (2011). Introns regulate the production and functional specificity of yeast ribosomes. Cell 147:320-331. Recommended by F1000. One of the 10th scientific discoveries of the year in Quebec recognized by Québec-Science.
Raymund Wellinger & Benoit Chabot
Patry, C, Lemieux, B., Wellinger, R. and Chabot, B. (2004). Targeting hnRNP A1 and A2 by RNA interference promotes cell death in transformed but not normal mouse cell lines. Mol. Cancer Ther. 3(10):1193-1199.
Lemieux, B., Blanchette, M., Monette, A., Mouland, A.J., Wellinger, R.J. and Chabot, B. (2015). A function for hnRNP A1 and A2 in transcription elongation. PLoS One. 10(5):e0126654. PMID: 26011126.
Raymund Wellinger & Daniel Lafontaine
Laterreur N, Eschbach SH, Lafontaine DA, Wellinger RJ. (2013) A new telomerase RNA element that is critical for telomere elongation. Nucl. Acids Res. 2013 Sep;41(16):7713-24. doi: 10.1093/nar/gkt514. Epub 2013 Jun 19.
Benoit Chabot & François Bachand
Bergeron, D., Pal, G., Beaulieu, Y.B., Chabot, B. and Bachand, F. (2015). Regulated intron retention and nuclear pre-mRNA decay contribute to PABPN1 autoregulation. Mol. Cell. Biol. 35(14) 2503-17. PMID: 25963658.
Brendan Bell & Benoit Chabot
Shkreta, L., Bell, B., Revil, T., Venables, J.P., Prinos, P., Abou Elela, S. and Chabot, B. (2013). Cancer-associated perturbations in alternative pre-messenger RNA splicing. Cancer Treat Res. 158: 41-94.
Shkreta, L., Blanchette, M., Toutant, J., Wilhem, E., Bell, B., Story, B.A., Cochrane, A., Balachandran, A., Cheung, P.K., Harrigan, P.R., Grierson, D. and Chabot, B. (2016). Modulation of the splicing regulatory function of SRSF10 by a novel compound that impairs HIV-1 replication. Nucl. Acids Res. doi: 10.1093/nar/gkw1223 PMID : 27928057
Eric Massé & Daniel Lafontaine
Lalaouna D, Simoneau-Roy M, Lafontaine D, Massé E. (2013). Regulatory RNAs and target mRNA decay in prokaryotes. Biochim Biophys Acta. 2013 Jun-Jul;1829(6-7):742-7.PMID: 23500183
Caron MP, Bastet L, Lussier A, Simoneau-Roy M, Massé E, Lafontaine DA. (2012). Dual-acting riboswitch control of translation initiation and mRNA decay. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 109(50):E3444-53. PMID: 23169642
Bastet L, Dubé A, Massé E, Lafontaine DA. (2011). New insights into riboswitch regulation mechanisms. Mol Microbiol. 80(5):1148-54. PMID:21477128
Lemay JF, Desnoyers G, Blouin S, Heppell B, Bastet L, St-Pierre P, Massé E, Lafontaine DA. (2011). Comparative study between transcriptionally- and translationally-acting adenine riboswitches reveals key differences in riboswitch regulatory mechanisms. PLoS Genet. 7(1):e1001278.
Funding
The group currently has funds dedicated for the operation of an RNomics platform and scholarships for students working on collaborative projects. Financial support is provided mainly by the Université de Sherbrooke via funds for the “Centre de Recherche sur la Biologie de l’ARN (CRBAUS)” and individual research project grants supported by the Canadian Institutes for Health Research (CIHR) and the Natural Sciences and Engineering research Council of Canada (NSERC).
Our annual and monthly meetings as well as social activities are supported by companies and the Université de Sherbrooke.
Facility
Spining Disk Confocal Microscope
Spectrofluorometer
Spectropolarimeter
FPLC
Phosphor Imager
qPCR Platform
Multi-color Cytometer
NanoPro Protein Analysis Station
Luminescent Image Analyzer
Microcalorimeter
MiSeq Sequencer
Laser Scanning Confocal Microscope
Liquid Handling Platform
High-Throughput Imaging System
LabchipGX Bioanalyzer
Extracellular Flux Analyzer
Fluorescence Spectrophotometer
Clone Select Imager
The RNA group has state-of-the-art facilities that allow RNA structure-function studies, but also investigation at the genome-wide level. A major goal for our group is to maintain an infrastructure that facilitates the exchange of knowledge between members of all labs. Accordingly, the group initiated a monthly seminar series, acquired several pieces of shared equipment (e.g. real-time PCR instruments, Illumina MiSeq and NextSeq sequencing systems, Flow cytometers, confocal microscopes, FPLC, Spectrofluorometer, Bioanalyzer, Instant Imager, Microcalorimeter, Spectropolarimeter, etc.), and invested in a bioinformatic platform that includes a comprehensive database for reagents and experimental results.
The existing infrastructure was obtained by either the group or its members from many sources including the Université de Sherbrooke, FCAR, CFI, Genome Canada, and NSERC. The platform is currently maintained by a bioinformatics specialist (responsible for computational analyses of RNA-seq, ChiP-seq, alternative splicing data), a system administrator (responsible for the computer maintenance, database serving, and security) and 2 technicians (one responsible for library preparation and Illumina sequencing and another responsible for high-throughput cell transfection, phenotypic assays, and quantitative PCR).
The core facility help trains graduate students and serve as a central hub for technical expertise serving all labs. Instead of independently establishing techniques and constantly retrain new students, the staff of the core facility ensure fluid transfer of expertise between the different members of the group and efficiently troubleshoots technical problems.