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    TrawlerWeb: an online de novo motif discovery tool for next-generation sequencing datasets
    Dang, LT ; Tondl, M ; Chiu, MHH ; Revote, J ; Paten, B ; Tano, V ; Tokolyi, A ; Besse, F ; Quaife-Ryan, G ; Cumming, H ; Drvodelic, MJ ; Eichenlaub, MP ; Hallab, JC ; Stolper, JS ; Rossello, FJ ; Bogoyevitch, MA ; Jans, DA ; Nim, HT ; Porrello, ER ; Hudson, JE ; Ramialison, M (BMC, 2018-04-05)
    BACKGROUND: A strong focus of the post-genomic era is mining of the non-coding regulatory genome in order to unravel the function of regulatory elements that coordinate gene expression (Nat 489:57-74, 2012; Nat 507:462-70, 2014; Nat 507:455-61, 2014; Nat 518:317-30, 2015). Whole-genome approaches based on next-generation sequencing (NGS) have provided insight into the genomic location of regulatory elements throughout different cell types, organs and organisms. These technologies are now widespread and commonly used in laboratories from various fields of research. This highlights the need for fast and user-friendly software tools dedicated to extracting cis-regulatory information contained in these regulatory regions; for instance transcription factor binding site (TFBS) composition. Ideally, such tools should not require prior programming knowledge to ensure they are accessible for all users. RESULTS: We present TrawlerWeb, a web-based version of the Trawler_standalone tool (Nat Methods 4:563-5, 2007; Nat Protoc 5:323-34, 2010), to allow for the identification of enriched motifs in DNA sequences obtained from next-generation sequencing experiments in order to predict their TFBS composition. TrawlerWeb is designed for online queries with standard options common to web-based motif discovery tools. In addition, TrawlerWeb provides three unique new features: 1) TrawlerWeb allows the input of BED files directly generated from NGS experiments, 2) it automatically generates an input-matched biologically relevant background, and 3) it displays resulting conservation scores for each instance of the motif found in the input sequences, which assists the researcher in prioritising the motifs to validate experimentally. Finally, to date, this web-based version of Trawler_standalone remains the fastest online de novo motif discovery tool compared to other popular web-based software, while generating predictions with high accuracy. CONCLUSIONS: TrawlerWeb provides users with a fast, simple and easy-to-use web interface for de novo motif discovery. This will assist in rapidly analysing NGS datasets that are now being routinely generated. TrawlerWeb is freely available and accessible at: http://trawler.erc.monash.edu.au .
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    Insulin-like growth factor-1 overexpression in cardiomyocytes diminishes ex vivo heart functional recovery after acute ischemia
    Prele, CM ; Reichelt, ME ; Mutsaers, SE ; Davies, M ; Delbridge, LM ; Headrick, JP ; Rosenthal, N ; Bogoyevitch, MA ; Grounds, MD (ELSEVIER SCIENCE INC, 2012)
    BACKGROUND: Acute insulin-like growth factor-1 administration has been shown to have beneficial effects in cardiac pathological conditions. The aim of the present study was to assess the structural and ex vivo functional impacts of long-term cardiomyocyte-specific insulin-like growth factor-1 overexpression in hearts of transgenic αMHC-IGF-1 Ea mice. METHODS: Performance of isolated transgenic αMHC-IGF-1 Ea and littermate wild-type control hearts was compared under baseline conditions and in response to 20-min ischemic insult. Cardiac desmin and laminin expression patterns were determined histologically, and myocardial hydroxyproline was measured to assess collagen content. RESULTS: Overexpression of insulin-like growth factor-1 did not modify expression patterns of desmin or laminin but was associated with a pronounced increase (∼30%) in cardiac collagen content (from ∼3.7 to 4.8 μg/mg). Baseline myocardial contractile function and coronary flow were unaltered by insulin-like growth factor-1 overexpression. In contrast to prior evidence of acute cardiac protection, insulin-like growth factor-1 overexpression was associated with significant impairment of acute functional response to ischemia-reperfusion. Insulin-like growth factor-1 overexpression did not modify ischemic contracture development, but postischemic diastolic dysfunction was aggravated (51±5 vs. 22±6 mmHg in nontransgenic littermates). Compared with wild-type control, recovery of pressure development and relaxation indices relative to baseline performance were significantly reduced in transgenic αMHC-IGF-1 Ea after 60-min reperfusion (34±7% vs. 62±7% recovery of +dP/dt; 35±11% vs. 57±8% recovery of -dP/dt). CONCLUSIONS: Chronic insulin-like growth factor-1 overexpression is associated with reduced functional recovery after acute ischemic insult. Collagen deposition is elevated in transgenic αMHC-IGF-1 Ea hearts, but there is no change in expression of the myocardial structural proteins desmin and laminin. These findings suggest that sustained cardiac elevation of insulin-like growth factor-1 may not be beneficial in the setting of an acute ischemic insult.