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Updated: Apr 20, 2026

A Deep-sequencing-assisted, Spontaneous Suppressor Screen in the Fission Yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe
Published on: March 7, 2019
Natural genetic variation impacts expression levels of coding, non-coding, and antisense transcripts in fission yeast
Mathieu Clément-Ziza1, Francesc X Marsellach2, Sandra Codlin2
1Biotechnology Centre, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany Cologne Cluster of Excellence in Cellular Stress Responses in Aging-associated Diseases (CECAD), University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany.
This study reveals that natural genetic variation significantly impacts gene expression, including non-coding RNAs, in fission yeast. Researchers identified a specific gene variation affecting numerous RNA levels, offering new insights into gene regulation.
Area of Science:
- Genetics
- Molecular Biology
- Yeast Biology
Background:
- Understanding natural genetic variation's impact on gene expression is limited, especially for non-coding regions.
- Expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs) studies using deep sequencing offer a powerful approach to address this knowledge gap.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effects of natural genetic variation on the coding, non-coding, and antisense transcriptomes in fission yeast.
- To characterize the prevalence of local (cis) versus distant (trans) regulatory effects on gene expression.
Main Methods:
- Generation of the first fission yeast recombinant strain library.
- RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) based quantitative trait loci (QTL) analysis.
- Identification and characterization of specific genetic variations influencing transcript levels.
Main Results:
- Trans-eQTLs are significantly more frequent than cis-eQTLs.
- Non-coding RNAs are regulated by eQTLs as frequently as protein-coding RNAs.
- A specific swc5 genetic variation was found to affect 871 RNAs, impacting both sense and antisense transcription, likely via H2A.Z histone variant deposition.
Conclusions:
- Natural genetic variation plays a substantial role in regulating diverse RNA species, including non-coding transcripts.
- The study provides a valuable resource of strains, methods, and datasets for future genetic and transcriptomic research in fission yeast.
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