@article{MuellerCosentinoFoerstneretal.2018,
  author    = {M{\"u}ller, Laura S. M. and Cosentino, Ra{\´u}l O. and F{\"o}rstner, Konrad U. and Guizetti, Julien and Wedel, Carolin and Kaplan, Noam and Janzen, Christian J. and Arampatzi, Panagiota and Vogel, J{\"o}rg and Steinbiss, Sascha and Otto, Thomas D. and Saliba, Antoine-Emmanuel and Sebra, Robert P. and Siegel, T. Nicolai},
  title     = {Genome organization and DNA accessibility control antigenic variation in trypanosomes},
  series = {Nature},
  volume    = {563},
  journal   = {Nature},
  doi       = {10.1038/s41586-018-0619-8},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-224265},
  pages     = {121-125},
  year      = {2018},
  abstract  = {Many evolutionarily distant pathogenic organisms have evolved similar survival strategies to evade the immune responses of their hosts. These include antigenic variation, through which an infecting organism prevents clearance by periodically altering the identity of proteins that are visible to the immune system of the host1. Antigenic variation requires large reservoirs of immunologically diverse antigen genes, which are often generated through homologous recombination, as well as mechanisms to ensure the expression of one or very few antigens at any given time. Both homologous recombination and gene expression are affected by three-dimensional genome architecture and local DNA accessibility2,3. Factors that link three-dimensional genome architecture, local chromatin conformation and antigenic variation have, to our knowledge, not yet been identified in any organism. One of the major obstacles to studying the role of genome architecture in antigenic variation has been the highly repetitive nature and heterozygosity of antigen-gene arrays, which has precluded complete genome assembly in many pathogens. Here we report the de novo haplotype-specific assembly and scaffolding of the long antigen-gene arrays of the model protozoan parasite Trypanosoma brucei, using long-read sequencing technology and conserved features of chromosome folding4. Genome-wide chromosome conformation capture (Hi-C) reveals a distinct partitioning of the genome, with antigen-encoding subtelomeric regions that are folded into distinct, highly compact compartments. In addition, we performed a range of analyses—Hi-C, fluorescence in situ hybridization, assays for transposase-accessible chromatin using sequencing and single-cell RNA sequencing—that showed that deletion of the histone variants H3.V and H4.V increases antigen-gene clustering, DNA accessibility across sites of antigen expression and switching of the expressed antigen isoform, via homologous recombination. Our analyses identify histone variants as a molecular link between global genome architecture, local chromatin conformation and antigenic variation.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{DaeullaryImdahlDietrichetal.2023,
  author    = {D{\"a}ullary, Thomas and Imdahl, Fabian and Dietrich, Oliver and Hepp, Laura and Krammer, Tobias and Fey, Christina and Neuhaus, Winfried and Metzger, Marco and Vogel, J{\"o}rg and Westermann, Alexander J. and Saliba, Antoine-Emmanuel and Zdzieblo, Daniela},
  title     = {A primary cell-based in vitro model of the human small intestine reveals host olfactomedin 4 induction in response to Salmonella Typhimurium infection},
  series = {Gut Microbes},
  volume    = {15},
  journal   = {Gut Microbes},
  number    = {1},
  doi       = {10.1080/19490976.2023.2186109},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-350451},
  year      = {2023},
  abstract  = {Infection research largely relies on classical cell culture or mouse models. Despite having delivered invaluable insights into host-pathogen interactions, both have limitations in translating mechanistic principles to human pathologies. Alternatives can be derived from modern Tissue Engineering approaches, allowing the reconstruction of functional tissue models in vitro. Here, we combined a biological extracellular matrix with primary tissue-derived enteroids to establish an in vitro model of the human small intestinal epithelium exhibiting in vivo-like characteristics. Using the foodborne pathogen Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium, we demonstrated the applicability of our model to enteric infection research in the human context. Infection assays coupled to spatio-temporal readouts recapitulated the established key steps of epithelial infection by this pathogen in our model. Besides, we detected the upregulation of olfactomedin 4 in infected cells, a hitherto unrecognized aspect of the host response to Salmonella infection. Together, this primary human small intestinal tissue model fills the gap between simplistic cell culture and animal models of infection, and shall prove valuable in uncovering human-specific features of host-pathogen interplay.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{AlbrechtSharmaDittrichetal.2011,
  author    = {Albrecht, Marco and Sharma, Cynthia M. and Dittrich, Marcus T. and M{\"u}ller, Tobias and Reinhardt, Richard and Vogel, J{\"o}rg and Rudel, Thomas},
  title     = {The Transcriptional Landscape of Chlamydia pneumoniae},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-69116},
  year      = {2011},
  abstract  = {Background: Gene function analysis of the obligate intracellular bacterium Chlamydia pneumoniae is hampered by the facts that this organism is inaccessible to genetic manipulations and not cultivable outside the host. The genomes of several strains have been sequenced; however, very little information is available on the gene structure and transcriptome of C. pneumoniae. Results: Using a differential RNA-sequencing approach with specific enrichment of primary transcripts, we defined the transcriptome of purified elementary bodies and reticulate bodies of C. pneumoniae strain CWL-029; 565 transcriptional start sites of annotated genes and novel transcripts were mapped. Analysis of adjacent genes for cotranscription revealed 246 polycistronic transcripts. In total, a distinct transcription start site or an affiliation to an operon could be assigned to 862 out of 1,074 annotated protein coding genes. Semi-quantitative analysis of mapped cDNA reads revealed significant differences for 288 genes in the RNA levels of genes isolated from elementary bodies and reticulate bodies. We have identified and in part confirmed 75 novel putative non-coding RNAs. The detailed map of transcription start sites at single nucleotide resolution allowed for the first time a comprehensive and saturating analysis of promoter consensus sequences in Chlamydia. Conclusions: The precise transcriptional landscape as a complement to the genome sequence will provide new insights into the organization, control and function of genes. Novel non-coding RNAs and identified common promoter motifs will help to understand gene regulation of this important human pathogen.},
  subject      = {Chlamydia pneumoniae},
  language  = {en}
}