0000000000019060
AUTHOR
Katharina Schmid
Data from an international multi-centre Study of Statistics and Mathematics Anxieties and Related Variables in University Students (the SMARVUS Dataset)
This large, international dataset contains survey responses from N = 12,570 students from 100 universities in 35 countries, collected in 21 languages. We measured anxieties (statistics, mathematics, test, trait, social interaction, performance, creativity, intolerance of uncertainty, and fear of negative evaluation), self-efficacy, persistence, and the cognitive reflection test, and collected demographics, previous mathematics grades, self-reported and official statistics grades, and statistics module details. Data reuse potential is broad, including testing links between anxieties and statistics/mathematics education factors, and examining instruments’ psychometric properties across differ…
Analysis of RNA modifications by liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry
The analysis of RNA modifications is of high importance in order to address a wide range of biological questions. Therefore, a highly sensitive and accurate method such as liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) has to be available. By using different LC-MS/MS procedures, it is not only possible to quantify very low amounts of RNA modifications, but also to detect probably unknown modified nucleosides. For these cases the dynamic multiple reaction monitoring and the neutral loss scan are the most common techniques. Here, we provide the whole workflow for analyzing RNA samples regarding their modification content. This includes an equipment list, the preparation of required…
LC-MS Analysis of Methylated RNA
The detection and quantification of methylated RNA can be beneficial to understand certain cellular regulation processes such as transcriptional modulation of gene expression, immune response, or epigenetic alterations. Therefore, it is necessary to have methods available, which are extremely sensitive and accurate, for instance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Here, we describe the preparation of RNA samples by enzymatic hydrolysis and the subsequent analysis of ribonucleosides by LC-MS/MS via NLS (Neutral loss scan) and DMRM (Dynamic multiple reaction monitoring). Also, we provide variations of these methods including chromatographic techniques and different kind…
Variable presence of 5-methylcytosine in commercial RNA and DNA
Nucleoside methylations and other nucleic acid modifications have recently encountered a surge in interest, prompted, among other things, by the detection of methylation and active demethylation of DNA and mRNA by similar mechanisms. In DNA, deoxycytidine methylation by Dnmt enzymes generates 5-methyldeoxycytidine,1 an important epigenetic mark that typically causes inactivation of transcription of the methylated promoter region. Recent exciting developments have shown that these marks are not concrete-cast, but can be actively removed by the oxidative action of TET enzymes,2 which generate, through a series of 2-electron oxidations, first hydroxymethylcytidine (hm5C), then formyldeoxycytid…
Comprehensive DNA methylation analysis of the Aedes aegypti genome
AbstractAedes aegypti mosquitoes are important vectors of viral diseases. Mosquito host factors play key roles in virus control and it has been suggested that dengue virus replication is regulated by Dnmt2-mediated DNA methylation. However, recent studies have shown that Dnmt2 is a tRNA methyltransferase and that Dnmt2-dependent methylomes lack defined DNA methylation patterns, thus necessitating a systematic re-evaluation of the mosquito genome methylation status. We have now searched the Ae. aegypti genome for candidate DNA modification enzymes. This failed to reveal any known (cytosine-5) DNA methyltransferases, but identified homologues for the Dnmt2 tRNA methyltransferase, the Mettl4 (…
m6A modulates neuronal functions and sex determination in Drosophila
N6-methyladenosine RNA (m6A) is a prevalent messenger RNA modification in vertebrates. Although its functions in the regulation of post-transcriptional gene expression are beginning to be unveiled, the precise roles of m6A during development of complex organisms remain unclear. Here we carry out a comprehensive molecular and physiological characterization of the individual components of the methyltransferase complex, as well as of the YTH domain-containing nuclear reader protein in Drosophila melanogaster. We identify the member of the split ends protein family, Spenito, as a novel bona fide subunit of the methyltransferase complex. We further demonstrate important roles of this complex in …
The reverse transcription signature of N-1-methyladenosine in RNA-Seq is sequence dependent
The combination of Reverse Transcription (RT) and high-throughput sequencing has emerged as a powerful combination to detect modified nucleotides in RNA via analysis of either abortive RT-products or of the incorporation of mismatched dNTPs into cDNA. Here we simultaneously analyze both parameters in detail with respect to the occurrence of N-1-methyladenosine (m1A) in the template RNA. This naturally occurring modification is associated with structural effects, but it is also known as a mediator of antibiotic resistance in ribosomal RNA. In structural probing experiments with dimethylsulfate, m1A is routinely detected by RT-arrest. A specifically developed RNA-Seq protocol was tailored to …
Alkyne-Functionalized Coumarin Compound for Analytic and Preparative 4-Thiouridine Labeling
Bioconjugation of RNA is a dynamic field recently reinvigorated by a surge in research on post-transcriptional modification. This work focuses on the bioconjugation of 4-thiouridine, a nucleoside that occurs as a post-transcriptional modification in bacterial RNA and is used as a metabolic label and for cross-linking purposes in eukaryotic RNA. A newly designed coumarin compound named 4-bromomethyl-7-propargyloxycoumarin (PBC) is introduced, which exhibits remarkable selectivity for 4-thiouridine. Bearing a terminal alkyne group, it is conductive to secondary bioconjugation via “click chemistry”, thereby offering a wide range of preparative and analytical options. We applied PBC to quantita…
The marbled crayfish as a paradigm for saltational speciation by autopolyploidy and parthenogenesis in animals
ABSTRACT The parthenogenetic all-female marbled crayfish is a novel research model and potent invader of freshwater ecosystems. It is a triploid descendant of the sexually reproducing slough crayfish, Procambarus fallax, but its taxonomic status has remained unsettled. By cross-breeding experiments and parentage analysis we show here that marbled crayfish and P. fallax are reproductively separated. Both crayfish copulate readily, suggesting that the reproductive barrier is set at the cytogenetic rather than the behavioural level. Analysis of complete mitochondrial genomes of marbled crayfish from laboratory lineages and wild populations demonstrates genetic identity and indicates a single o…
Variable presence of 5-methylcytosine in commercial RNA and DNA
5-methylcytosine (m5C, mC) is a naturally occurring nucleoside modification in both RNA and DNA. Its presence in DNA is a widely accepted epigenetic mark for transcription inactivation. In RNA, its appearance in different coding as well as non-coding RNA implies multiple functions, with regulation of gene expression as a common denominator. Here we report on the serendipitous discovery of m5C in synthetic oligonucleotides, which prompted a systematic quantification in synthetic DNA and RNA of academic as well as of commercial origin. For both types of oligonucleotides, m5C was identified by comparison of fragmentation pattern and retention time with authentic standards by highly sensitive L…