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Fisher MJ, Luse DS. Defining a chromatin architecture that supports transcription at RNA polymerase II promoters. J Biol Chem 2024:107515. [PMID: 38945447 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2024.107515] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2024] [Revised: 06/19/2024] [Accepted: 06/25/2024] [Indexed: 07/02/2024] Open
Abstract
Mammalian RNA polymerase II preinitiation complexes assemble adjacent to a nucleosome whose proximal edge (NPE) is typically 40-50 bp downstream of the transcription start site (TSS). At active promoters, that +1 nucleosome is universally modified by trimethylation on lysine 4 of histone H3 (H3K4me3). The Pol II preinitiation complex only extends 35 bp beyond the TSS, but nucleosomal templates with an NPE at +51 are nearly inactive in vitro with promoters that lack a TATA element and thus depend on TFIID for promoter recognition. Significantly, this inhibition is relieved when the +1 nucleosome contains H3K4me3, which can interact with TFIID subunits. Here we show that H3K4me3 templates with both TATA and TATA-less promoters are active with +35 NPEs when transcription is driven by TFIID. Templates with +20 NPE are also active but at reduced levels compared to +35 and +51 NPEs, consistent with a general inhibition of promoter function when the proximal nucleosome encroaches on the preinitation complex. Remarkably, dinucleosome templates support transcription when H3K4me3 is only present in the distal nucleosome, suggesting that TFIID-H3K4me3 interaction does not require modification of the +1 nucleosome. Transcription reactions performed with an alternative protocol that retains most nuclear factors results primarily in early termination, with a minority of complexes successfully traversing the first nucleosome. In such reactions the +1 nucleosome does not substantially affect the level of termination even with an NPE of +20, indicating that a nucleosome barrier is not a major driver of early termination by Pol II.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael J Fisher
- Department of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Sciences, Lerner Research Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
| | - Donal S Luse
- Department of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Sciences, Lerner Research Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio, USA.
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He AY, Danko CG. Dissection of core promoter syntax through single nucleotide resolution modeling of transcription initiation. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.03.13.583868. [PMID: 38559255 PMCID: PMC10979970 DOI: 10.1101/2024.03.13.583868] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/04/2024]
Abstract
Our understanding of how the DNA sequences of cis-regulatory elements encode transcription initiation patterns remains limited. Here we introduce CLIPNET, a deep learning model trained on population-scale PRO-cap data that accurately predicts the position and quantity of transcription initiation with single nucleotide resolution from DNA sequence. Interpretation of CLIPNET revealed a complex regulatory syntax consisting of DNA-protein interactions in five major positions between -200 and +50 bp relative to the transcription start site, as well as more subtle positional preferences among different transcriptional activators. Transcriptional activator and core promoter motifs occupy different positions and play distinct roles in regulating initiation, with the former driving initiation quantity and the latter initiation position. We identified core promoter motifs that explain initiation patterns in the majority of promoters and enhancers, including DPR motifs and AT-rich TBP binding sequences in TATA-less promoters. Our results provide insights into the sequence architecture governing transcription initiation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam Y. He
- Baker Institute for Animal Health, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University
- Graduate Field of Computational Biology, Cornell University
| | - Charles G. Danko
- Baker Institute for Animal Health, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University
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Sloutskin A, Itzhak D, Vogler G, Ideses D, Alter H, Shachar H, Doniger T, Frasch M, Bodmer R, Duttke SH, Juven-Gershon T. A single DPE core promoter motif contributes to in vivo transcriptional regulation and affects cardiac function. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.06.11.544490. [PMID: 37398300 PMCID: PMC10312617 DOI: 10.1101/2023.06.11.544490] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/04/2023]
Abstract
Transcription is initiated at the core promoter, which confers specific functions depending on the unique combination of core promoter elements. The downstream core promoter element (DPE) is found in many genes related to heart and mesodermal development. However, the function of these core promoter elements has thus far been studied primarily in isolated, in vitro or reporter gene settings. tinman (tin) encodes a key transcription factor that regulates the formation of the dorsal musculature and heart. Pioneering a novel approach utilizing both CRISPR and nascent transcriptomics, we show that a substitution mutation of the functional tin DPE motif within the natural context of the core promoter results in a massive perturbation of Tinman's regulatory network orchestrating dorsal musculature and heart formation. Mutation of endogenous tin DPE reduced the expression of tin and distinct target genes, resulting in significantly reduced viability and an overall decrease in adult heart function. We demonstrate the feasibility and importance of characterizing DNA sequence elements in vivo in their natural context, and accentuate the critical impact a single DPE motif has during Drosophila embryogenesis and functional heart formation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Sloutskin
- The Mina and Everard Goodman Faculty of Life Sciences, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
| | - Dekel Itzhak
- The Mina and Everard Goodman Faculty of Life Sciences, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
| | - Georg Vogler
- Development, Aging and Regeneration Program, Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Diana Ideses
- The Mina and Everard Goodman Faculty of Life Sciences, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
| | - Hadar Alter
- The Mina and Everard Goodman Faculty of Life Sciences, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
| | - Hadar Shachar
- The Mina and Everard Goodman Faculty of Life Sciences, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
| | - Tirza Doniger
- The Mina and Everard Goodman Faculty of Life Sciences, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
| | - Manfred Frasch
- Division of Developmental Biology, Department of Biology, Friedrich-Alexander University of Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen, Germany
| | - Rolf Bodmer
- Development, Aging and Regeneration Program, Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Sascha H Duttke
- School of Molecular Biosciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, USA
| | - Tamar Juven-Gershon
- The Mina and Everard Goodman Faculty of Life Sciences, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
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Hoffmann A. Designer genes courtesy of artificial intelligence. Genes Dev 2023; 37:351-353. [PMID: 37253615 PMCID: PMC10270197 DOI: 10.1101/gad.350783.123] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/01/2023]
Abstract
The core promoter determines not only where gene transcription initiates but also the transcriptional activity in both basal and enhancer-induced conditions. Multiple short sequence elements within the core promoter have been identified in different species, but how they function together and to what extent they are truly species-specific has remained unclear. In this issue of Genes & Development, Vo ngoc and colleagues (pp. 377-382) report undertaking massively parallel measurements of synthetic core promoters to generate a large data set of their activities that informs a statistical learning model to identify the sequence differences of human and Drosophila core promoters. This machine learning model was then applied to design gene core promoters that are particularly specific for the human transcriptional machinery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander Hoffmann
- Signaling Systems Laboratory, Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics, Institute for Quantitative and Computational Biosciences, Molecular Biology Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90025, USA
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