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Geiger LT, Balouek JA, Farrelly LA, Chen AS, Tang M, Bennett SN, Nestler EJ, Garcia BA, Maze I, Peña CJ. Early-life stress alters chromatin modifications in VTA to prime stress sensitivity. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.03.14.584631. [PMID: 38559030 PMCID: PMC10980038 DOI: 10.1101/2024.03.14.584631] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/04/2024]
Abstract
Early-life stress increases sensitivity to subsequent stress, which has been observed among humans, other animals, at the level of cellular activity, and at the level of gene expression. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying such long-lasting sensitivity are poorly understood. We tested the hypothesis that persistent changes in transcription and transcriptional potential were maintained at the level of the epigenome, through changes in chromatin. We used a combination of bottom-up mass spectrometry, viral-mediated epigenome-editing, behavioral quantification, and RNA-sequencing in a mouse model of early-life stress, focusing on the ventral tegmental area (VTA), a brain region critically implicated in motivation, reward learning, stress response, and mood and drug disorders. We find that early-life stress in mice alters histone dynamics in VTA and that a majority of these modifications are associated with an open chromatin state that would predict active, primed, or poised gene expression, including enriched histone-3 lysine-4 methylation and the H3K4 monomethylase Setd7. Mimicking ELS through over-expression of Setd7 and enrichment of H3K4me1 in VTA recapitulates ELS-induced behavioral and transcriptional hypersensitivity to future stress. These findings enrich our understanding of the epigenetic mechanisms linking early-life environmental experiences to long-term alterations in stress reactivity within the brain's reward circuitry, with implications for understanding and potentially treating mood and anxiety disorders in humans.
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Yang ZZ, Parchem RJ. The role of noncoding RNAs in pancreatic birth defects. Birth Defects Res 2023; 115:1785-1808. [PMID: 37066622 PMCID: PMC10579456 DOI: 10.1002/bdr2.2178] [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: 01/18/2023] [Revised: 03/19/2023] [Accepted: 04/03/2023] [Indexed: 04/18/2023]
Abstract
Congenital defects in the pancreas can cause severe health issues such as pancreatic cancer and diabetes which require lifelong treatment. Regenerating healthy pancreatic cells to replace malfunctioning cells has been considered a promising cure for pancreatic diseases including birth defects. However, such therapies are currently unavailable in the clinic. The developmental gene regulatory network underlying pancreatic development must be reactivated for in vivo regeneration and recapitulated in vitro for cell replacement therapy. Thus, understanding the mechanisms driving pancreatic development will pave the way for regenerative therapies. Pancreatic progenitor cells are the precursors of all pancreatic cells which use epigenetic changes to control gene expression during differentiation to generate all of the distinct pancreatic cell types. Epigenetic changes involving DNA methylation and histone modifications can be controlled by noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs). Indeed, increasing evidence suggests that ncRNAs are indispensable for proper organogenesis. Here, we summarize recent insight into the role of ncRNAs in the epigenetic regulation of pancreatic development. We further discuss how disruptions in ncRNA biogenesis and expression lead to developmental defects and diseases. This review summarizes in vivo data from animal models and in vitro studies using stem cell differentiation as a model for pancreatic development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ziyue Zoey Yang
- Development, Disease Models & Therapeutics Graduate Program, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
- Center for Cell and Gene Therapy, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
- Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Ronald J Parchem
- Development, Disease Models & Therapeutics Graduate Program, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
- Center for Cell and Gene Therapy, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
- Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
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Norrie disease protein is essential for cochlear hair cell maturation. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2021; 118:2106369118. [PMID: 34544869 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2106369118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/13/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Mutations in the gene for Norrie disease protein (Ndp) cause syndromic deafness and blindness. We show here that cochlear function in an Ndp knockout mouse deteriorated with age: At P3-P4, hair cells (HCs) showed progressive loss of Pou4f3 and Gfi1, key transcription factors for HC maturation, and Myo7a, a specialized myosin required for normal function of HC stereocilia. Loss of expression of these genes correlated to increasing HC loss and profound hearing loss by 2 mo. We show that overexpression of the Ndp gene in neonatal supporting cells or, remarkably, up-regulation of canonical Wnt signaling in HCs rescued HCs and cochlear function. We conclude that Ndp secreted from supporting cells orchestrates a transcriptional network for the maintenance and survival of HCs and that increasing the level of β-catenin, the intracellular effector of Wnt signaling, is sufficient to replace the functional requirement for Ndp in the cochlea.
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Dumasia NP, Pethe PS. Pancreas development and the Polycomb group protein complexes. Mech Dev 2020; 164:103647. [PMID: 32991980 DOI: 10.1016/j.mod.2020.103647] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2020] [Revised: 09/02/2020] [Accepted: 09/17/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
The dual nature of pancreatic tissue permits both endocrine and exocrine functions. Enzymatic secretions by the exocrine pancreas help digestive processes while the pancreatic hormones regulate glucose homeostasis and energy metabolism. Pancreas organogenesis is defined by a conserved array of signaling pathways that act on common gut progenitors to bring about the generation of diverse cell types. Multiple cellular processes characterize development of the mature organ. These processes are mediated by signaling pathways that regulate lineage-specific transcription factors and chromatin modifications guiding long-term gene expression programs. The chromatin landscape is altered chiefly by DNA or histone modifications, chromatin remodelers, and non-coding RNAs. Amongst histone modifiers, several studies have identified Polycomb group (PcG) proteins as crucial determinants mediating transcriptional repression of genes involved in developmental processes. Although PcG-mediated chromatin modifications define cellular transitions and influence cell identity of multipotent progenitors, much remains to be understood regarding coordination between extracellular signals and their impact on Polycomb functions during the pancreas lineage progression. In this review, we discuss interactions between sequence-specific DNA binding proteins and chromatin regulators underlying pancreas development and insulin producing β-cells, with particular focus on Polycomb group proteins. Understanding such basic molecular mechanisms would improve current strategies for stem cell-based differentiation while also help elucidate the pathogenesis of several pancreas-related maladies, including diabetes and pancreatic cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Niloufer P Dumasia
- Department of Biological Sciences, Sunandan Divatia School of Science, SVKM's NMIMS (deemed to-be) University, Mumbai 400 056, India
| | - Prasad S Pethe
- Symbiosis Centre for Stem Cell Research (SCSCR), Symbiosis International University, Lavale, Pune 412 115, India.
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Basuroy T, de la Serna IL. SETD7 in cardiomyocyte differentiation and cardiac function. Stem Cell Investig 2019; 6:29. [PMID: 31620476 DOI: 10.21037/sci.2019.08.01] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2019] [Accepted: 07/30/2019] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Tupa Basuroy
- Center for Cancer Research, Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center, Charlestown, MA, USA
| | - Ivana L de la Serna
- University of Toledo College of Medicine and Life Sciences, Department of Cancer Biology, Toledo, OH, USA
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SETD7 Drives Cardiac Lineage Commitment through Stage-Specific Transcriptional Activation. Cell Stem Cell 2019; 22:428-444.e5. [PMID: 29499155 DOI: 10.1016/j.stem.2018.02.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2017] [Revised: 12/15/2017] [Accepted: 02/07/2018] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Cardiac development requires coordinated and large-scale rearrangements of the epigenome. The roles and precise mechanisms through which specific epigenetic modifying enzymes control cardiac lineage specification, however, remain unclear. Here we show that the H3K4 methyltransferase SETD7 controls cardiac differentiation by reading H3K36 marks independently of its enzymatic activity. Through chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing (ChIP-seq), we found that SETD7 targets distinct sets of genes to drive their stage-specific expression during cardiomyocyte differentiation. SETD7 associates with different co-factors at these stages, including SWI/SNF chromatin-remodeling factors during mesodermal formation and the transcription factor NKX2.5 in cardiac progenitors to drive their differentiation. Further analyses revealed that SETD7 binds methylated H3K36 in the bodies of its target genes to facilitate RNA polymerase II (Pol II)-dependent transcription. Moreover, abnormal SETD7 expression impairs functional attributes of terminally differentiated cardiomyocytes. Together, these results reveal how SETD7 acts at sequential steps in cardiac lineage commitment, and they provide insights into crosstalk between dynamic epigenetic marks and chromatin-modifying enzymes.
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Nayak A, Lopez-Davila AJ, Kefalakes E, Holler T, Kraft T, Amrute-Nayak M. Regulation of SETD7 Methyltransferase by SENP3 Is Crucial for Sarcomere Organization and Cachexia. Cell Rep 2019; 27:2725-2736.e4. [DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2019.04.107] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2018] [Revised: 03/20/2019] [Accepted: 04/24/2019] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
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Giannios I, Serafimidis I, Anastasiou V, Pezzolla D, Lesche M, Andree C, Bickle M, Gavalas A. Protein Methyltransferase Inhibition Decreases Endocrine Specification Through the Upregulation of Aldh1b1 Expression. Stem Cells 2019; 37:640-651. [PMID: 30681750 PMCID: PMC6850398 DOI: 10.1002/stem.2979] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2018] [Revised: 12/04/2018] [Accepted: 12/22/2018] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Understanding the mechanisms that promote the specification of pancreas progenitors and regulate their self-renewal and differentiation will help to maintain and expand pancreas progenitor cells derived from human pluripotent stem (hPS) cells. This will improve the efficiency of current differentiation protocols of hPS cells into β-cells and bring such cells closer to clinical applications for the therapy of diabetes. Aldehyde dehydrogenase 1b1 (Aldh1b1) is a mitochondrial enzyme expressed specifically in progenitor cells during mouse pancreas development, and we have shown that its functional inactivation leads to accelerated differentiation and deficient β-cells. In this report, we aimed to identify small molecule inducers of Aldh1b1 expression taking advantage of a mouse embryonic stem (mES) cell Aldh1b1 lacZ reporter line and a pancreas differentiation protocol directing mES cells into pancreatic progenitors. We identified AMI-5, a protein methyltransferase inhibitor, as an Aldh1b1 inducer and showed that it can maintain Aldh1b1 expression in embryonic pancreas explants. This led to a selective reduction in endocrine specification. This effect was due to a downregulation of Ngn3, and it was mediated through Aldh1b1 since the effect was abolished in Aldh1b1 null pancreata. The findings implicated methyltransferase activity in the regulation of endocrine differentiation and showed that methyltransferases can act through specific regulators during pancreas differentiation. Stem Cells 2019;37:640-651.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ioannis Giannios
- Paul Langerhans Institute Dresden (PLID) of Helmholtz Center Munich at the University Clinic Carl Gustav Carus of TU Dresden, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany.,German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD e.V.), Neuherberg, Germany
| | | | - Vivian Anastasiou
- Paul Langerhans Institute Dresden (PLID) of Helmholtz Center Munich at the University Clinic Carl Gustav Carus of TU Dresden, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany.,German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD e.V.), Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Daniela Pezzolla
- Center for Regenerative Therapies Dresden (CRTD), Faculty of Medicine, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Mathias Lesche
- Paul Langerhans Institute Dresden (PLID) of Helmholtz Center Munich at the University Clinic Carl Gustav Carus of TU Dresden, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany.,German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD e.V.), Neuherberg, Germany.,Biotechnology Center (Biotec), TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Cordula Andree
- Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Dresden, Germany
| | - Marc Bickle
- Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Dresden, Germany
| | - Anthony Gavalas
- Paul Langerhans Institute Dresden (PLID) of Helmholtz Center Munich at the University Clinic Carl Gustav Carus of TU Dresden, Helmholtz Zentrum München, German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany.,German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD e.V.), Neuherberg, Germany.,Center for Regenerative Therapies Dresden (CRTD), Faculty of Medicine, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany
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Biological processes and signal transduction pathways regulated by the protein methyltransferase SETD7 and their significance in cancer. Signal Transduct Target Ther 2018; 3:19. [PMID: 30013796 PMCID: PMC6043541 DOI: 10.1038/s41392-018-0017-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2017] [Revised: 02/05/2018] [Accepted: 03/21/2018] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Protein methyltransferases have been shown to methylate histone and non-histone proteins, leading to regulation of several biological processes that control cell homeostasis. Over the past few years, the histone-lysine N-methyltransferase SETD7 (SETD7; also known as SET7/9, KIAA1717, KMT7, SET7, SET9) has emerged as an important regulator of at least 30 non-histone proteins and a potential target for the treatment of several human diseases. This review discusses current knowledge of the structure and subcellular localization of SETD7, as well as its function as a histone and non-histone methyltransferase. This work also underlines the putative contribution of SETD7 to the regulation of gene expression, control of cell proliferation, differentiation and endoplasmic reticulum stress, which indicate that SETD7 is a candidate for novel targeted therapies with the aim of either stimulating or inhibiting its activity, depending on the cell signaling context.
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Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW Despite better knowledge of its genetic basis, pancreatic cancer is still highly lethal with very few therapeutic options. In this review, we discuss the potential impact of epigenetic therapies, focusing on lysine methylation signaling and its implication in pancreatic cancer. RECENT FINDINGS Protein lysine methylation, a key mechanism of posttranslational modifications of histone proteins, has emerged as a major cell signaling mechanism regulating physiologic and pathologic processes including cancer. This finely tuned and dynamic signaling mechanism is regulated by lysine methyltransferases (KMT), lysine demethylases (KDM) and signal transducers harboring methyl-binding domains. Recent evidence demonstrates that overexpression of cytoplasmic KMT and resulting enhanced lysine methylation is a reversible event that enhances oncogenic signaling through the Ras and Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases pathway in pancreatic cancer, opening perspectives for new anticancer chemotherapeutics aimed at controlling these activities. SUMMARY The development of potent and specific inhibitors of lysine methylation signaling may represent a hitherto largely unexplored avenue for new forms of targeted therapy in cancer, with great potential for yet hard-to-treat cancers such as pancreatic cancer.
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Al-Khawaga S, Memon B, Butler AE, Taheri S, Abou-Samra AB, Abdelalim EM. Pathways governing development of stem cell-derived pancreatic β cells: lessons from embryogenesis. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2017. [DOI: 10.1111/brv.12349] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Sara Al-Khawaga
- Diabetes Research Center, Qatar Biomedical Research Institute; Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar Foundation, Education City; Doha Qatar
| | - Bushra Memon
- Diabetes Research Center, Qatar Biomedical Research Institute; Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar Foundation, Education City; Doha Qatar
| | - Alexandra E. Butler
- Larry L. Hillblom Islet Research Center, David Geffen School of Medicine; University of California; Los Angeles CA 90095 U.S.A
| | - Shahrad Taheri
- Department of Medicine; Weill Cornell Medicine in Qatar, Qatar Foundation, Education City, PO BOX 24144; Doha Qatar
- Department of Medicine; Qatar Metabolic Institute, Hamad Medical Corporation; Doha Qatar
| | - Abdul B. Abou-Samra
- Department of Medicine; Weill Cornell Medicine in Qatar, Qatar Foundation, Education City, PO BOX 24144; Doha Qatar
- Department of Medicine; Qatar Metabolic Institute, Hamad Medical Corporation; Doha Qatar
| | - Essam M. Abdelalim
- Diabetes Research Center, Qatar Biomedical Research Institute; Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar Foundation, Education City; Doha Qatar
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