(a) Demonstration of effective TP53
knockdown. RPE cells were treated with TP53 shRNA
lentivirus (DA079) or control lentivirus (DA081). The Western blot shows the
p53 response to treatment with the DNA intercalator doxorubicin (200 ng/ml
for 24 hours). (b) Left, the retrotransposition reporter assay.
LINE-1 is expressed from a plasmid with an antisense eGFP in the
3’UTR that is interrupted by a sense intron. During transcription,
the intron is spliced, reconstituting the coding potential of the eGFP
reporter. The eGFP reporter carries with it a CMV promoter and is inserted
into the genome by LINE-1. Expression of eGFP from the genome allows for
fluorescence-based quantification of retrotransposition rate by flow
cytometry. Right, reporter assay performed in RPE with TP53
knockdown or control ±SEM, n=3 independent experiments. P value was
calculated by two-sided T test. (c) Normalized median read
counts of sgRNAs targeting TP53 and CDKN1A
in cells expressing either LINE-1 (navy blue) or eGFP (green) control
compared to non-targeting-controls (NTC). Individual sgRNAs are indicated by
circles or triangles. Results from two biological replicates are
depicted.