Transcriptome sequencing of HELZ-null HEK293T human cell line generated by CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing

Eukaryotic SF1 helicases have been implicated in various aspects of RNA metabolism, including transcription, processing, translation, and degradation. Nevertheless, until now most human SF1 helicases remain poorly understood. Here, we have functionally and biochemically characterized the role of a putative SF1 helicase termed 'Helicase with Zinc-finger', or HELZ. We discovered that HELZ associates with various mRNA decay factors including components of the CCR4-NOT deadenylase complex in human and Drosophila melanogaster cells. The interaction between HELZ and the CCR4-NOT complex is direct and mediated by an extended low-complexity region in the C-terminal part of HELZ. We further reveal that HELZ uses the deadenylase complex to mediate translational repression and decapping-dependent mRNA decay. Transcriptome-wide analysis of HELZ-null cells suggests that HELZ has an important role in the regulation of the expression of genes associated with the development of the nervous system. Overall design: Two cell types with two biological replicates analysed using RNA-Seq