Accession Number:

ADA622412

Title:

Genome Annotation and Transcriptomics of Oil-Producing Algae

Descriptive Note:

Final rept. 1 Apr 2010-31 Dec 2014

Corporate Author:

CALIFORNIA UNIV LOS ANGELES

Personal Author(s):

• Merchant, Sabeeha
• Pellegrini, Matteo

Report Date:

2015-03-16

Pagination or Media Count:

10.0

Abstract:

Most algae accumulate triacylglycerols TAGs when they are starved for essential nutrients like N, S, P or Si in the case of some diatoms. We had proposed to use whole transcriptome analyses to detail the changes in gene expression that occur during N-starvation induced TAG accumulation in Chlamydomonas. We used RNA-Seq on the Illumina platform for quantitative determination of the Chlamydomonas transcriptome. Deep coverage over multiple time points in nearly a dozen different experiments in at least 3 strains allowed us to distinguish early responses to the stress signal and to unequivocally identify relevant changes in RNA abundance. This led to the functional identification of 8 acyltransferases, several of which were documented to have a role in TAG accumulation in stressed algal cells, and candidate regulators of the N starvation response. We used our RNA-Seq data analysis pipeline for building and quantitating transcripts from Chlorella and Cyclotella in TAG-producing conditions and we assembled a draft genome for Cyclotella. During a period of project extension, we generated new strand-specific RNA-Seq data from ribosomal RNA-depleted preparations of RNA for the purpose of identifying regulatory lncRNAs.

Descriptors:

• *ALGAE
• *GENE EXPRESSION
• *STARVATION
• DIESEL FUELS
• GENOME
• NUTRIENTS
• OILS
• RIBONUCLEIC ACIDS
• TRANSCRIPTION(GENETICS)

Subject Categories:

• Genetic Engineering and Molecular Biology
• Biology
• Stress Physiology

Distribution Statement:

APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE