Early neural specification of stem cells is mediated by a set of SOX2-dependent neural-associated enhancers.

ABSTRACT: SOX2 is a transcription factor involved in the regulatory network maintaining the pluripotency of embryonic stem cells in culture as well as in early embryos. In addition, SOX2 plays a pivotal role in neural stem cell formation and neurogenesis. How SOX2 can serve both processes has remained elusive. Here, we identified a set of SOX2-dependent neural-associated enhancers required for neural lineage priming. They form a distinct subgroup (1,898) among 8,531 OCT4/SOX2/NANOG-bound enhancers characterized by enhanced SOX2 binding and chromatin accessibility. Activation of these enhancers is triggered by neural induction of wild-type cells or by default in Smad4-ablated cells resistant to mesoderm induction and is antagonized by mesodermal transcription factors via Sox2 repression. Our data pro

SUBMITTER: Tsaytler P 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11103784 | biostudies-literature | 2024 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature