7月5日,Cell Stem Cell雜誌在線報導,科學家發現了一種在幹細胞和早期胚胎發育中發揮關鍵調節作用的非經典多梳家族蛋白複合物。
科學家已知多梳家族蛋白成員L3mbtl2與轉錄抑制和染色質組裝有關,但尚未確定其生物學功能。本研究顯示,破壞L3mbtl2表達可導致胚胎不能完成原腸胚發育而致死的結果。與此相應的是,L3mbtl2敲除胚胎幹細胞(ES細胞)的增殖和分化出現異常。
L3mbtl2通過招募多梳蛋白抑制複合物1(PRC1)相關的複合物來調節基因表達。該複合物類似於已知的E2F6複合物,包括G9A, HDAC1,Ring1b等組分。L3mbtl2常與 H3K9的二重甲基化,組蛋白低乙醯化,和H2AK119泛素化一同出現在靶基因的部位,但這些修飾狀態則既不依賴於L3mbtl2的存在,也不足以抑制基因表達。
全基因組的研究顯示,L3mbtl2依賴的抑制複合物主要調節那些不被經典的PRC1和PRC2所抑制的基因的表達。然而,一些發育調節子可被L3mbtl2、PRC1和PRC2所聯合抑制調節。總之,本研究發現一種具有高度選擇性的,非典型的PRC1家族複合物。它在ES細胞執行正常功能和早期胚胎發育中具有重要作用。(生物谷bioon.com)
The Polycomb Group Protein L3mbtl2 Assembles an Atypical PRC1-Family Complex that Is Essential in Pluripotent Stem Cells and Early Development
Jinzhong Qin, Warren A. Whyte, Endre Anderssen, Effie Apostolou, Hsu-Hsin Chen, Schahram Akbarian, Roderick T. Bronson, Konrad Hochedlinger, Sridhar Ramaswamy, Richard A. Young, Hanno Hock
L3mbtl2 has been implicated in transcriptional repression and chromatin compaction but its biological function has not been defined. Here we show that disruption of L3mbtl2 results in embryonic lethality with failure of gastrulation. This correlates with compromised proliferation and abnormal differentiation of L3mbtl2/ embryonic stem (ES) cells. L3mbtl2 regulates genes by recruiting a Polycomb Repressive Complex1 (PRC1)-related complex, resembling the previously described E2F6-complex, and including G9A, Hdac1, and Ring1b. The presence of L3mbtl2 at target genes is associated with H3K9 dimethylation, low histone acetylation, and H2AK119 ubiquitination, but the latter is neither dependent on L3mbtl2 nor sufficient for repression. Genome-wide studies revealed that the L3mbtl2-dependent complex predominantly regulates genes not bound by canonical PRC1 and PRC2. However, some developmental regulators are repressed by the combined activity of all three complexes. Together, we have uncovered a highly selective, essential role for an atypical PRC1-family complex in ES cells and early development.