Examination of the Telomere G-Overhang Structure in Trypanosoma brucei

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

1-1-2010

Publication Title

Journal of Visualized Experiments

Abstract

The telomere G-overhang structure has been identified in many eukaryotes including yeast, vertebrates, and Trypanosoma brucei. It serves as the substrate for telomerase for de novo telomere DNA synthesis and is therefore important for telomere maintenance. T. brucei is a protozoan parasite that causes sleeping sickness in humans and nagana in cattle. Once infected mammalian host, T. brucei cell regularly switches its surface antigen to evade the host's immune attack. We have recently demonstrated that the T. brucei telomere structure plays an essential role in regulation of surface antigen gene expression, which is critical for T. brucei pathogenesis. However, T. brucei telomere structure has not been extensively studied due to the limitation of methods for analysis of this specialized structure. We have now successfully adopted the native in-gel hybridization and ligation-mediated primer extension methods for examination of the telomere G-overhang structure and an adaptor ligation method for determination of the telomere terminal nucleotide in T. brucei cells. Here, we will describe the protocols in detail and compare their different advantages and limitations. © JoVE 2006-2011 All Rights Reserved.

Comments

This work is supported by NIH grant AI066095

DOI

10.3791/1959

Volume

None

Issue

47

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