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Gahan JM, Helfrich LW, Wetzel LA, Bhanu NV, Yuan ZF, Garcia BA, Klose R, Booth DS. Chromatin profiling identifies putative dual roles for H3K27me3 in regulating transposons and cell type-specific genes in choanoflagellates. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.05.28.596151. [PMID: 38854040 PMCID: PMC11160669 DOI: 10.1101/2024.05.28.596151] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2024]
Abstract
Gene expression is tightly controlled during animal development to allow the formation of specialized cell types. Our understanding of how animals evolved this exquisite regulatory control remains elusive, but evidence suggests that changes in chromatin-based mechanisms may have contributed. To investigate this possibility, here we examine chromatin-based gene regulatory features in the closest relatives of animals, choanoflagellates. Using Salpingoeca rosetta as a model system, we examined chromatin accessibility and histone modifications at the genome scale and compared these features to gene expression. We first observed that accessible regions of chromatin are primarily associated with gene promoters and found no evidence of distal gene regulatory elements resembling the enhancers that animals deploy to regulate developmental gene expression. Remarkably, a histone modification deposited by polycomb repressive complex 2, histone H3 lysine 27 trimethylation (H3K27me3), appeared to function similarly in S. rosetta to its role in animals, because this modification decorated genes with cell type-specific expression. Additionally, H3K27me3 marked transposons, retaining what appears to be an ancestral role in regulating these elements. We further uncovered a putative new bivalent chromatin state at cell type-specific genes that consists of H3K27me3 and histone H3 lysine 4 mono-methylation (H3K4me1). Together, our discoveries support the scenario that gene-associated histone modification states that underpin development emerged before the evolution of animal multicellularity.
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Affiliation(s)
- James M. Gahan
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Present Address: Centre for Chromosome Biology, School of Biological and Chemical Sciences, University of Galway, Galway, Ireland
| | - Lily W. Helfrich
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute / University of California, Berkeley, Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, Berkeley, CA 94720
- Present Address: Benchling
| | - Laura A. Wetzel
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute / University of California, Berkeley, Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, Berkeley, CA 94720
- Present Address: BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc
| | - Natarajan V. Bhanu
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, MO, USA
| | - Zuo-Fei Yuan
- Center for Proteomics and Metabolomics, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Benjamin A. Garcia
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, MO, USA
| | - Rob Klose
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - David S. Booth
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
- Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
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2
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Atanasoff-Kardjalieff AK, Berger H, Steinert K, Janevska S, Ponts N, Humpf HU, Kalinina S, Studt-Reinhold L. Incorporation of the histone variant H2A.Z counteracts gene silencing mediated by H3K27 trimethylation in Fusarium fujikuroi. Epigenetics Chromatin 2024; 17:7. [PMID: 38509556 PMCID: PMC10953111 DOI: 10.1186/s13072-024-00532-y] [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] [Received: 09/23/2023] [Accepted: 02/15/2024] [Indexed: 03/22/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Fusarium fujikuroi is a pathogen of rice causing diverse disease symptoms such as 'bakanae' or stunting, most likely due to the production of various natural products (NPs) during infection. Fusaria have the genetic potential to synthesize a plethora of these compounds with often diverse bioactivity. The capability to synthesize NPs exceeds the number of those being produced by far, implying a gene regulatory network decisive to induce production. One such regulatory layer is the chromatin structure and chromatin-based modifications associated with it. One prominent example is the exchange of histones against histone variants such as the H2A variant H2A.Z. Though H2A.Z already is well studied in several model organisms, its regulatory functions are not well understood. Here, we used F. fujikuroi as a model to explore the role of the prominent histone variant FfH2A.Z in gene expression within euchromatin and facultative heterochromatin. RESULTS Through the combination of diverse '-omics' methods, we show the global distribution of FfH2A.Z and analyze putative crosstalks between the histone variant and two prominent histone marks, i.e., H3K4me3 and H3K27me3, important for active gene transcription and silencing, respectively. We demonstrate that, if FfH2A.Z is positioned at the + 1-nucleosome, it poises chromatin for gene transcription, also within facultative heterochromatin. Lastly, functional characterization of FfH2A.Z overexpression and depletion mutants revealed that FfH2A.Z is important for wild type-like fungal development and secondary metabolism. CONCLUSION In this study, we show that the histone variant FfH2A.Z is a mark of positive gene transcription and acts independently of the chromatin state most likely through the stabilization of the + 1-nucleosome. Furthermore, we demonstrate that FfH2A.Z depletion does not influence the establishment of both H3K27me3 and H3K4me3, thus indicating no crosstalk between FfH2A.Z and both histone marks. These results highlight the manifold functions of the histone variant FfH2A.Z in the phytopathogen F. fujikuroi, which are distinct regarding gene transcription and crosstalk with the two prominent histone marks H3K27me3 and H3K4me3, as proposed for other model organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna K Atanasoff-Kardjalieff
- Department of Applied Genetics and Cell Biology, Institute of Microbial Genetics, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Konrad-Lorenz Strasse 24, Tulln an der Donau, 3430, Austria
| | - Harald Berger
- Department of Applied Genetics and Cell Biology, Institute of Microbial Genetics, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Konrad-Lorenz Strasse 24, Tulln an der Donau, 3430, Austria
| | - Katharina Steinert
- Institute of Food Chemistry, University of Münster, Corrensstraße 45, 48149, Münster, Germany
| | - Slavica Janevska
- (Epi-)Genetic Regulation of Fungal Virulence, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology-Hans Knöll Institute, 07745, Jena, Germany
| | - Nadia Ponts
- INRAE, UR1264 Mycology and Food Safety (MycSA), Villenave d'Ornon, 33882, France
| | - Hans-Ulrich Humpf
- Institute of Food Chemistry, University of Münster, Corrensstraße 45, 48149, Münster, Germany
| | - Svetlana Kalinina
- Institute of Food Chemistry, University of Münster, Corrensstraße 45, 48149, Münster, Germany
| | - Lena Studt-Reinhold
- Department of Applied Genetics and Cell Biology, Institute of Microbial Genetics, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Konrad-Lorenz Strasse 24, Tulln an der Donau, 3430, Austria.
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3
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Poinsignon T, Gallopin M, Grognet P, Malagnac F, Lelandais G, Poulain P. 3D models of fungal chromosomes to enhance visual integration of omics data. NAR Genom Bioinform 2023; 5:lqad104. [PMID: 38058589 PMCID: PMC10696920 DOI: 10.1093/nargab/lqad104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2023] [Revised: 10/11/2023] [Accepted: 11/17/2023] [Indexed: 12/08/2023] Open
Abstract
The functions of eukaryotic chromosomes and their spatial architecture in the nucleus are reciprocally dependent. Hi-C experiments are routinely used to study chromosome 3D organization by probing chromatin interactions. Standard representation of the data has relied on contact maps that show the frequency of interactions between parts of the genome. In parallel, it has become easier to build 3D models of the entire genome based on the same Hi-C data, and thus benefit from the methodology and visualization tools developed for structural biology. 3D modeling of entire genomes leverages the understanding of their spatial organization. However, this opportunity for original and insightful modeling is underexploited. In this paper, we show how seeing the spatial organization of chromosomes can bring new perspectives to omics data integration. We assembled state-of-the-art tools into a workflow that goes from Hi-C raw data to fully annotated 3D models and we re-analysed public omics datasets available for three fungal species. Besides the well-described properties of the spatial organization of their chromosomes (Rabl conformation, hypercoiling and chromosome territories), our results highlighted (i) in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the backbones of the cohesin anchor regions, which were aligned all along the chromosomes, (ii) in Schizosaccharomyces pombe, the oscillations of the coiling of chromosome arms throughout the cell cycle and (iii) in Neurospora crassa, the massive relocalization of histone marks in mutants of heterochromatin regulators. 3D modeling of the chromosomes brings new opportunities for visual integration of omics data. This holistic perspective supports intuition and lays the foundation for building new concepts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thibault Poinsignon
- Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (I2BC), CEA, CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, 91198 Gif-sur-Yvette, France
- Université Paris Cité, CNRS, Institut Jacques Monod, F-75013 Paris, France
| | - Mélina Gallopin
- Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (I2BC), CEA, CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, 91198 Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Pierre Grognet
- Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (I2BC), CEA, CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, 91198 Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Fabienne Malagnac
- Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (I2BC), CEA, CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, 91198 Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Gaëlle Lelandais
- Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (I2BC), CEA, CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, 91198 Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Pierre Poulain
- Université Paris Cité, CNRS, Institut Jacques Monod, F-75013 Paris, France
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Hisanaga T, Romani F, Wu S, Kowar T, Wu Y, Lintermann R, Fridrich A, Cho CH, Chaumier T, Jamge B, Montgomery SA, Axelsson E, Akimcheva S, Dierschke T, Bowman JL, Fujiwara T, Hirooka S, Miyagishima SY, Dolan L, Tirichine L, Schubert D, Berger F. The Polycomb repressive complex 2 deposits H3K27me3 and represses transposable elements in a broad range of eukaryotes. Curr Biol 2023; 33:4367-4380.e9. [PMID: 37738971 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.08.073] [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] [Received: 10/28/2022] [Revised: 06/19/2023] [Accepted: 08/24/2023] [Indexed: 09/24/2023]
Abstract
The mobility of transposable elements (TEs) contributes to evolution of genomes. Their uncontrolled activity causes genomic instability; therefore, expression of TEs is silenced by host genomes. TEs are marked with DNA and H3K9 methylation, which are associated with silencing in flowering plants, animals, and fungi. However, in distantly related groups of eukaryotes, TEs are marked by H3K27me3 deposited by the Polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2), an epigenetic mark associated with gene silencing in flowering plants and animals. The direct silencing of TEs by PRC2 has so far only been shown in one species of ciliates. To test if PRC2 silences TEs in a broader range of eukaryotes, we generated mutants with reduced PRC2 activity and analyzed the role of PRC2 in extant species along the lineage of Archaeplastida and in the diatom P. tricornutum. In this diatom and the red alga C. merolae, a greater proportion of TEs than genes were repressed by PRC2, whereas a greater proportion of genes than TEs were repressed by PRC2 in bryophytes. In flowering plants, TEs contained potential cis-elements recognized by transcription factors and associated with neighbor genes as transcriptional units repressed by PRC2. Thus, silencing of TEs by PRC2 is observed not only in Archaeplastida but also in diatoms and ciliates, suggesting that PRC2 deposited H3K27me3 to silence TEs in the last common ancestor of eukaryotes. We hypothesize that during the evolution of Archaeplastida, TE fragments marked with H3K27me3 were selected to shape transcriptional regulation, controlling networks of genes regulated by PRC2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tetsuya Hisanaga
- Gregor Mendel Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna BioCenter, Dr. Bohr-Gasse 3, 1030 Vienna, Austria
| | - Facundo Romani
- Department of Plant Sciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EA, UK
| | - Shuangyang Wu
- Gregor Mendel Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna BioCenter, Dr. Bohr-Gasse 3, 1030 Vienna, Austria
| | - Teresa Kowar
- Epigenetics of Plants, Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Yue Wu
- Nantes Université, CNRS, US2B, UMR 6286, 44000 Nantes, France
| | - Ruth Lintermann
- Epigenetics of Plants, Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Arie Fridrich
- Gregor Mendel Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna BioCenter, Dr. Bohr-Gasse 3, 1030 Vienna, Austria
| | - Chung Hyun Cho
- Gregor Mendel Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna BioCenter, Dr. Bohr-Gasse 3, 1030 Vienna, Austria; Department of Biological Sciences, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon 16419, South Korea
| | | | - Bhagyshree Jamge
- Gregor Mendel Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna BioCenter, Dr. Bohr-Gasse 3, 1030 Vienna, Austria; Vienna BioCenter PhD Program, Doctoral School of the University of Vienna and Medical University of Vienna, 1030 Vienna, Austria
| | - Sean A Montgomery
- Gregor Mendel Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna BioCenter, Dr. Bohr-Gasse 3, 1030 Vienna, Austria; Vienna BioCenter PhD Program, Doctoral School of the University of Vienna and Medical University of Vienna, 1030 Vienna, Austria
| | - Elin Axelsson
- Gregor Mendel Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna BioCenter, Dr. Bohr-Gasse 3, 1030 Vienna, Austria
| | - Svetlana Akimcheva
- Gregor Mendel Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna BioCenter, Dr. Bohr-Gasse 3, 1030 Vienna, Austria
| | - Tom Dierschke
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia
| | - John L Bowman
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia; ARC Centre of Excellence for Plant Success in Nature and Agriculture, Monash University, Clayton, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia
| | - Takayuki Fujiwara
- Department of Gene Function and Phenomics, National Institute of Genetics, Mishima, Shizuoka 411-8540, Japan; Department of Genetics, Graduate University for Advanced Studies, SOKENDAI, Mishima, Shizuoka 411-8540, Japan
| | - Shunsuke Hirooka
- Department of Gene Function and Phenomics, National Institute of Genetics, Mishima, Shizuoka 411-8540, Japan; Department of Genetics, Graduate University for Advanced Studies, SOKENDAI, Mishima, Shizuoka 411-8540, Japan
| | - Shin-Ya Miyagishima
- Department of Gene Function and Phenomics, National Institute of Genetics, Mishima, Shizuoka 411-8540, Japan; Department of Genetics, Graduate University for Advanced Studies, SOKENDAI, Mishima, Shizuoka 411-8540, Japan
| | - Liam Dolan
- Gregor Mendel Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna BioCenter, Dr. Bohr-Gasse 3, 1030 Vienna, Austria
| | - Leila Tirichine
- Nantes Université, CNRS, US2B, UMR 6286, 44000 Nantes, France
| | - Daniel Schubert
- Epigenetics of Plants, Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany.
| | - Frédéric Berger
- Gregor Mendel Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna BioCenter, Dr. Bohr-Gasse 3, 1030 Vienna, Austria.
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5
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Kramer HM, Cook DE, Seidl MF, Thomma BP. Epigenetic regulation of nuclear processes in fungal plant pathogens. PLoS Pathog 2023; 19:e1011525. [PMID: 37535497 PMCID: PMC10399791 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1011525] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Through the association of protein complexes to DNA, the eukaryotic nuclear genome is broadly organized into open euchromatin that is accessible for enzymes acting on DNA and condensed heterochromatin that is inaccessible. Chemical and physical alterations to chromatin may impact its organization and functionality and are therefore important regulators of nuclear processes. Studies in various fungal plant pathogens have uncovered an association between chromatin organization and expression of in planta-induced genes that are important for pathogenicity. This review discusses chromatin-based regulation mechanisms as determined in the fungal plant pathogen Verticillium dahliae and relates the importance of epigenetic transcriptional regulation and other nuclear processes more broadly in fungal plant pathogens.
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Affiliation(s)
- H. Martin Kramer
- Laboratory of Phytopathology, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, the Netherlands
| | - David E. Cook
- Laboratory of Phytopathology, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, the Netherlands
- Department of Plant Pathology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas, United States of America
| | - Michael F. Seidl
- Laboratory of Phytopathology, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, the Netherlands
- Theoretical Biology & Bioinformatics, Department of Biology, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Bart P.H.J. Thomma
- Laboratory of Phytopathology, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, the Netherlands
- University of Cologne, Institute for Plant Sciences, Cluster of Excellence on Plant Sciences (CEPLAS), Cologne, Germany
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6
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Lelandais G, Remy D, Malagnac F, Grognet P. New insights into genome annotation in Podospora anserina through re-exploiting multiple RNA-seq data. BMC Genomics 2022; 23:859. [PMID: 36581831 PMCID: PMC9801653 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-022-09085-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2022] [Accepted: 12/16/2022] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Publicly available RNA-seq datasets are often underused although being helpful to improve functional annotation of eukaryotic genomes. This is especially true for filamentous fungi genomes which structure differs from most well annotated yeast genomes. Podospora anserina is a filamentous fungal model, which genome has been sequenced and annotated in 2008. Still, the current annotation lacks information about cis-regulatory elements, including promoters, transcription starting sites and terminators, which are instrumental to integrate epigenomic features into global gene regulation strategies. RESULTS Here we took advantage of 37 RNA-seq experiments that were obtained in contrasted developmental and physiological conditions, to complete the functional annotation of P. anserina genome. Out of the 10,800 previously annotated genes, 5'UTR and 3'UTR were defined for 7554, among which, 3328 showed differential transcriptional signal starts and/or transcriptional end sites. In addition, alternative splicing events were detected for 2350 genes, mostly due alternative 3'splice sites and 1732 novel transcriptionally active regions (nTARs) in unannotated regions were identified. CONCLUSIONS Our study provides a comprehensive genome-wide functional annotation of P. anserina genome, including chromatin features, cis-acting elements such as UTRs, alternative splicing events and transcription of non-coding regions. These new findings will likely improve our understanding of gene regulation strategies in compact genomes, such as those of filamentous fungi. Characterization of alternative transcripts and nTARs paves the way to the discovery of putative new genes, alternative peptides or regulatory non-coding RNAs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gaëlle Lelandais
- grid.457334.20000 0001 0667 2738Université Paris-Saclay, CEA, CNRS, Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (I2BC), 91198 Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Damien Remy
- grid.457334.20000 0001 0667 2738Université Paris-Saclay, CEA, CNRS, Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (I2BC), 91198 Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Fabienne Malagnac
- grid.457334.20000 0001 0667 2738Université Paris-Saclay, CEA, CNRS, Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (I2BC), 91198 Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Pierre Grognet
- grid.457334.20000 0001 0667 2738Université Paris-Saclay, CEA, CNRS, Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (I2BC), 91198 Gif-sur-Yvette, France
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7
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Complementary Strategies to Unlock Biosynthesis Gene Clusters Encoding Secondary Metabolites in the Filamentous Fungus Podospora anserina. J Fungi (Basel) 2022; 9:jof9010009. [PMID: 36675830 PMCID: PMC9864250 DOI: 10.3390/jof9010009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2022] [Revised: 12/09/2022] [Accepted: 12/19/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The coprophilous ascomycete Podospora anserina is known to have a high potential to synthesize a wide array of secondary metabolites (SMs). However, to date, the characterization of SMs in this species, as in other filamentous fungal species, is far less than expected by the functional prediction through genome mining, likely due to the inactivity of most SMs biosynthesis gene clusters (BGCs) under standard conditions. In this work, our main objective was to compare the global strategies usually used to deregulate SM gene clusters in P. anserina, including the variation of culture conditions and the modification of the chromatin state either by genetic manipulation or by chemical treatment, and to show the complementarity of the approaches between them. In this way, we showed that the metabolomics-driven comparative analysis unveils the unexpected diversity of metabolic changes in P. anserina and that the integrated strategies have a mutual complementary effect on the expression of the fungal metabolome. Then, our results demonstrate that metabolite production is significantly influenced by varied cultivation states and epigenetic modifications. We believe that the strategy described in this study will facilitate the discovery of fungal metabolites of interest and will improve the ability to prioritize the production of specific fungal SMs with an optimized treatment.
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Paramecium Polycomb repressive complex 2 physically interacts with the small RNA-binding PIWI protein to repress transposable elements. Dev Cell 2022; 57:1037-1052.e8. [DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2022.03.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2021] [Revised: 02/10/2022] [Accepted: 03/21/2022] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
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9
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Vijayanathan M, Trejo-Arellano MG, Mozgová I. Polycomb Repressive Complex 2 in Eukaryotes-An Evolutionary Perspective. EPIGENOMES 2022; 6:3. [PMID: 35076495 PMCID: PMC8788455 DOI: 10.3390/epigenomes6010003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2021] [Revised: 01/12/2022] [Accepted: 01/12/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2) represents a group of evolutionarily conserved multi-subunit complexes that repress gene transcription by introducing trimethylation of lysine 27 on histone 3 (H3K27me3). PRC2 activity is of key importance for cell identity specification and developmental phase transitions in animals and plants. The composition, biochemistry, and developmental function of PRC2 in animal and flowering plant model species are relatively well described. Recent evidence demonstrates the presence of PRC2 complexes in various eukaryotic supergroups, suggesting conservation of the complex and its function. Here, we provide an overview of the current understanding of PRC2-mediated repression in different representatives of eukaryotic supergroups with a focus on the green lineage. By comparison of PRC2 in different eukaryotes, we highlight the possible common and diverged features suggesting evolutionary implications and outline emerging questions and directions for future research of polycomb repression and its evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mallika Vijayanathan
- Biology Centre, Institute of Plant Molecular Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, 370 05 Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic; (M.V.); (M.G.T.-A.)
| | - María Guadalupe Trejo-Arellano
- Biology Centre, Institute of Plant Molecular Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, 370 05 Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic; (M.V.); (M.G.T.-A.)
| | - Iva Mozgová
- Biology Centre, Institute of Plant Molecular Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, 370 05 Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic; (M.V.); (M.G.T.-A.)
- Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, 370 05 Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
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10
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Meng S, Liu Z, Shi H, Wu Z, Qiu J, Wen H, Lin F, Tao Z, Luo C, Kou Y. UvKmt6-mediated H3K27 trimethylation is required for development, pathogenicity, and stress response in Ustilaginoidea virens. Virulence 2021; 12:2972-2988. [PMID: 34895056 PMCID: PMC8667953 DOI: 10.1080/21505594.2021.2008150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2) is responsible for the trimethylation of lysine 27 of histone H3 (H3K27me3)-mediated transcriptional silencing. At present, its biological roles in the devastating rice pathogenic fungus Ustilaginoidea virens remain unclear. In this study, we analyzed the function of a putative PRC2 catalytic subunit UvKmt6. The results showed that disruption of UvKMT6 resulted in reduced growth, conidiation and pathogenicity in U. virens. Furthermore, UvKmt6 is essential for establishment of H3K27me3 modification, which covers 321 genes in the genome. Deletion of UvKMT6 led to transcriptional derepression of 629 genes, 140 of which were occupied with H3K27me3 modification. Consistent with RNA-seq and ChIP-seq analysis, UvKmt6 was further confirmed to participate in the transcriptional repression of genes encoding effectors and genes associated with secondary metabolites production, such as PKSs, NRPSs and Cytochrome P450s. Notably, we found that UvKmt6 is involved in transcriptional repression of oxidative, osmotic, cell wall and nutrient starvation stresses response-related genes. From the perspective of gene expression and phenotype, in addition to the relatively conservative role in fungal development, virulence and production of secondary metabolites, we further reported that UvKmt6-mdediated H3K27me3 plays a critical role in the response to various stresses in U. virens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuai Meng
- State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, China National Rice Research Institute, Hangzhou, China.,Hubei Key Laboratory of Plant Pathology, and College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
| | - Zhiquan Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, China National Rice Research Institute, Hangzhou, China
| | - Huanbin Shi
- State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, China National Rice Research Institute, Hangzhou, China
| | - Zhongling Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, Institute of Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Jiehua Qiu
- State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, China National Rice Research Institute, Hangzhou, China
| | - Hui Wen
- State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, China National Rice Research Institute, Hangzhou, China
| | - Fucheng Lin
- State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, Institute of Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.,State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Threats to the Quality and Safety of Agro-products, Institute of Plant Protection and Microbiology, Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou, China
| | - Zeng Tao
- State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, Institute of Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.,State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Threats to the Quality and Safety of Agro-products, Institute of Plant Protection and Microbiology, Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou, China
| | - Chaoxi Luo
- Hubei Key Laboratory of Plant Pathology, and College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
| | - Yanjun Kou
- State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, China National Rice Research Institute, Hangzhou, China
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Sato H, Santos-González J, Köhler C. Combinations of maternal-specific repressive epigenetic marks in the endosperm control seed dormancy. eLife 2021; 10:e64593. [PMID: 34427186 PMCID: PMC8456740 DOI: 10.7554/elife.64593] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2020] [Accepted: 08/23/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Polycomb Repressive Complex 2 (PRC2)-mediated trimethylation of histone H3 on lysine 27 (H3K27me3) and methylation of histone 3 on lysine 9 (H3K9me) are two repressive epigenetic modifications that are typically localized in distinct regions of the genome. For reasons unknown, however, they co-occur in some organisms and special tissue types. In this study, we show that maternal alleles marked by H3K27me3 in the Arabidopsis endosperm were targeted by the H3K27me3 demethylase REF6 and became activated during germination. In contrast, maternal alleles marked by H3K27me3, H3K9me2, and CHG methylation (CHGm) are likely to be protected from REF6 targeting and remained silenced. Our study unveils that combinations of different repressive epigenetic modifications time a key adaptive trait by modulating access of REF6.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hikaru Sato
- Department of Plant Biology, Uppsala BioCenter, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences and Linnean Centre for Plant BiologyUppsalaSweden
| | - Juan Santos-González
- Department of Plant Biology, Uppsala BioCenter, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences and Linnean Centre for Plant BiologyUppsalaSweden
| | - Claudia Köhler
- Department of Plant Biology, Uppsala BioCenter, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences and Linnean Centre for Plant BiologyUppsalaSweden
- Max Planck Institute of Molecular Plant PhysiologyPotsdam-GolmGermany
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Déléris A, Berger F, Duharcourt S. Role of Polycomb in the control of transposable elements. Trends Genet 2021; 37:882-889. [PMID: 34210514 DOI: 10.1016/j.tig.2021.06.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2021] [Revised: 05/31/2021] [Accepted: 06/03/2021] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
It is generally considered that Polycomb Repressive Complex (PRC)2 deposits the histone mark H3K27me3 on silent protein-coding genes, while transposable elements are repressed by DNA and/or H3K9 methylation. Yet, there is increasing evidence that PRC2 also targets and even silences transposable elements in representatives of several distantly related eukaryotic lineages. In plants and animals, H3K27me3 is present on transposable elements in mutants and specific cell types devoid of DNA methylation. In this Opinion, we summarize the experimental evidence for this phenomenon across the eukaryotic kingdom, and discuss its functional and evolutionary significance. We hypothesize that an ancestral role of Polycomb group (PcG) proteins was to silence transposable elements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Angélique Déléris
- Université Paris-Saclay, CEA, CNRS, Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (I2BC), 91198, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Frédéric Berger
- Gregor Mendel Institute (GMI), Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna Biocenter (VBC), Dr. Bohr-Gasse 3, 1030 Vienna, Austria
| | - Sandra Duharcourt
- Université de Paris, CNRS, Institut Jacques Monod, F-75006, Paris, France.
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Soyer JL, Clairet C, Gay EJ, Lapalu N, Rouxel T, Stukenbrock EH, Fudal I. Genome-wide mapping of histone modifications during axenic growth in two species of Leptosphaeria maculans showing contrasting genomic organization. Chromosome Res 2021; 29:219-236. [PMID: 34018080 PMCID: PMC8159818 DOI: 10.1007/s10577-021-09658-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2020] [Revised: 02/16/2021] [Accepted: 03/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Leptosphaeria maculans 'brassicae' (Lmb) and Leptosphaeria maculans 'lepidii' (Lml) are closely related phytopathogenic species that exhibit a large macrosynteny but contrasting genome structure. Lmb has more than 30% of repeats clustered in large repeat-rich regions, while the Lml genome has only a small amount of evenly distributed repeats. Repeat-rich regions of Lmb are enriched in effector genes, expressed during plant infection. The distinct genome structures of Lmb and Lml provide an excellent model for comparing the organization of pathogenicity genes in relation to the chromatin landscape in two closely related phytopathogenic fungi. Here, we performed chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) during axenic culture, targeting histone modifications typical for heterochromatin or euchromatin, combined with transcriptomic analysis to analyze the influence of chromatin organization on gene expression. In both species, we found that facultative heterochromatin is enriched with genes lacking functional annotation, including numerous effector and species-specific genes. Notably, orthologous genes located in H3K27me3 domains are enriched with effector genes. Compared to other fungal species, including Lml, Lmb is distinct in having large H3K9me3 domains associated with repeat-rich regions that contain numerous species-specific effector genes. Discovery of these two distinctive heterochromatin landscapes now raises questions about their involvement in the regulation of pathogenicity, the dynamics of these domains during plant infection and the selective advantage to the fungus to host effector genes in H3K9me3 or H3K27me3 domains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica L Soyer
- Université Paris-Saclay, INRAE, AgroParisTech, UMR BIOGER, 78850, Thiverval-Grignon, France.
- Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, August-Thienemann-Str. 2, 24306, Plön, Germany.
- Christian-Albrechts University of Kiel, Am Botanischen Garten 1-9, 24118, Kiel, Germany.
| | - Colin Clairet
- Université Paris-Saclay, INRAE, AgroParisTech, UMR BIOGER, 78850, Thiverval-Grignon, France
| | - Elise J Gay
- Université Paris-Saclay, INRAE, AgroParisTech, UMR BIOGER, 78850, Thiverval-Grignon, France
| | - Nicolas Lapalu
- Université Paris-Saclay, INRAE, AgroParisTech, UMR BIOGER, 78850, Thiverval-Grignon, France
| | - Thierry Rouxel
- Université Paris-Saclay, INRAE, AgroParisTech, UMR BIOGER, 78850, Thiverval-Grignon, France
| | - Eva H Stukenbrock
- Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, August-Thienemann-Str. 2, 24306, Plön, Germany
- Christian-Albrechts University of Kiel, Am Botanischen Garten 1-9, 24118, Kiel, Germany
| | - Isabelle Fudal
- Université Paris-Saclay, INRAE, AgroParisTech, UMR BIOGER, 78850, Thiverval-Grignon, France
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Local Rather than Global H3K27me3 Dynamics Are Associated with Differential Gene Expression in Verticillium dahliae. mBio 2021; 13:e0356621. [PMID: 35130723 PMCID: PMC8822345 DOI: 10.1128/mbio.03566-21] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Differential growth conditions typically trigger global transcriptional responses in filamentous fungi. Such fungal responses to environmental cues involve epigenetic regulation, including chemical histone modifications. It has been proposed that conditionally expressed genes, such as those that encode secondary metabolites but also effectors in pathogenic species, are often associated with a specific histone modification, lysine27 methylation of H3 (H3K27me3). However, thus far, no analyses on the global H3K27me3 profiles have been reported under differential growth conditions in order to assess if H3K27me3 dynamics govern differential transcription. Using chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing (ChIP-seq) and RNA sequencing data from the plant-pathogenic fungus Verticillium dahliae grown in three in vitro cultivation media, we now show that a substantial number of the identified H3K27me3 domains globally display stable profiles among these growth conditions. However, we observe local quantitative differences in H3K27me3 ChIP-seq signals that are associated with a subset of differentially transcribed genes between media. Comparing the in vitro results to expression during plant infection suggests that in planta-induced genes may require chromatin remodeling to achieve expression. Overall, our results demonstrate that some loci display H3K27me3 dynamics associated with concomitant transcriptional variation, but many differentially expressed genes are associated with stable H3K27me3 domains. Thus, we conclude that while H3K27me3 is required for transcriptional repression, it does not appear that transcriptional activation requires the global erasure of H3K27me3. We propose that the H3K27me3 domains that do not undergo dynamic methylation may contribute to transcription through other mechanisms or may serve additional genomic regulatory functions. IMPORTANCE In many organisms, including filamentous fungi, epigenetic mechanisms that involve chemical and physical modifications of DNA without changing the genetic sequence have been implicated in transcriptional responses upon developmental or environmental cues. In fungi, facultative heterochromatin that can decondense to allow transcription in response to developmental changes or environmental stimuli is characterized by the trimethylation of lysine 27 on histone H3 (H3K27me3), and H3K27me3 has been implicated in transcriptional regulation, although the precise mechanisms and functions remain enigmatic. Based on ChIP and RNA sequencing data, we show for the soilborne broad-host-range vascular wilt plant-pathogenic fungus Verticillium dahliae that although some loci display H3K27me3 dynamics that can contribute to transcriptional variation, other loci do not show such a dependence. Thus, although we recognize that H3K27me3 is required for transcriptional repression, we also conclude that this mark is not a conditionally responsive global regulator of differential transcription upon responses to environmental cues.
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