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Chromatin accessibility differences between alpha, beta, and delta cells identifies common and cell type-specific enhancers

ABSTRACT: High throughput sequencing has enabled the interrogation of the transcriptomic landscape of glucagon-secreting alpha cells, insulin-secreting beta cells, and somatostatin-secreting delta cells. These approaches have furthered our understanding of expression patterns that define healthy or diseased islet cell types and helped explicate some of the intricacies between major islet cell crosstalk and glucose regulation. All three endocrine cell types derive from a common pancreatic progenitor, yet alpha and beta cells have partially opposing functions, and delta cells modulate and control insulin and glucagon release. While gene signatures that define and maintain cellular identity have been widely explored, the underlying epigenetic components are incompletely characterized and understood. Chromatin accessibility and remodeling is a dynamic attribute that plays a critical role to determine and maintain cellular identity. Here, we compare and contrast the chromatin landscape between mouse alpha, beta, and delta cells using ATAC-Seq to evaluate the significant differences in chromatin accessibility. The similarities and differences in chromatin accessibility between these related islet endocrine cells help define their fate in support of their distinct functional roles. We identify patterns that suggest that both alpha and delta cells are poised, but repressed, from becoming beta-like. We also identify patterns in differentially enriched chromatin that have transcription factor motifs preferentially associated with different regions of the genome. Finally, we identify and visualize both novel and previously discovered common endocrine- and cell specific- enhancer regions across differentially enriched chromatin.

ORGANISM(S): Mus musculus

PROVIDER: GSE213970 | GEO | 2023/01/19

REPOSITORIES: GEO

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Project description:Objective: Although glucagon-secreting Î±-cells and insulin-secreting Î²-cells have opposing functions in regulating plasma glucose levels, the two cell types share a common developmental origin and have overlaps in their transcriptome and epigenome profiles. Notably, destruction of one of these cell populations can stimulate repopulation via transdifferentiation of the other cell type, at least in mice, suggesting plasticity between these cell fates. Furthermore, dysfunction of both Î±- and Î²-cells contributes to the pathophysiology of type 1 and type 2 diabetes, and Î²-cell de-differentiation has been proposed to contribute to type 2 diabetes. Our objective was to delineate the molecular properties that maintain islet cell type specification yet allow for cellular plasticity. We hypothesized that correlating cell type-specific transcriptomes with an atlas of open chromatin will identify novel genes and transcriptional regulatory elements such as enhancers involved in Î±- and Î²-cell specification and plasticity. Methods: We sorted human a- and b-cells and performed the â??Assay for Transposase-Accessible Chromatin with high throughput sequencingâ?? (ATAC-seq) and mRNA-seq, followed by integrative analysis to identify cell type-selective gene regulatory regions. Results: We identified numerous transcripts with either Î±-cell- or Î²-cell-selective expression and discovered the cell type-selective open chromatin regions that correlate with these gene activation patterns. We confirmed cell type-selective expression on the protein level for two of the top hits from our screen. The â??group specific proteinâ?? (GC; or vitamin D binding protein) was restricted to a-cells, while CHODL (chondrolectin) immunoreactivity was only present in b-cells. Furthermore, Î±-cell- and Î²-cell-selective ATAC-seq peaks were identified to overlap with known binding sites for islet transcription factors, as well as with common single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) previously identified as risk loci for type 2 diabetes. Conclusions: We have determined the genetic landscape of human Î±- and Î²-cells based on chromatin accessibility and transcript levels, which allowed for detection of novel Î±- and Î²-cell signature genes not previously known to be expressed in islets. Using fine-mapping of open chromatin, we have identified thousands of potential cis-regulatory elements that operate in an endocrine cell type-specific fashion. ATAC-seq on 3 human alpha cell samples, 3 human beta cell samples, and 2 human acinar cell samples. RNA-seq on 7 human alpha cell samples and 8 human beta cell samples.

Project description:Objective: Although glucagon-secreting α-cells and insulin-secreting β-cells have opposing functions in regulating plasma glucose levels, the two cell types share a common developmental origin and have overlaps in their transcriptome and epigenome profiles. Notably, destruction of one of these cell populations can stimulate repopulation via transdifferentiation of the other cell type, at least in mice, suggesting plasticity between these cell fates. Furthermore, dysfunction of both α- and β-cells contributes to the pathophysiology of type 1 and type 2 diabetes, and β-cell de-differentiation has been proposed to contribute to type 2 diabetes. Our objective was to delineate the molecular properties that maintain islet cell type specification yet allow for cellular plasticity. We hypothesized that correlating cell type-specific transcriptomes with an atlas of open chromatin will identify novel genes and transcriptional regulatory elements such as enhancers involved in α- and β-cell specification and plasticity. Methods: We sorted human a- and b-cells and performed the “Assay for Transposase-Accessible Chromatin with high throughput sequencing” (ATAC-seq) and mRNA-seq, followed by integrative analysis to identify cell type-selective gene regulatory regions. Results: We identified numerous transcripts with either α-cell- or β-cell-selective expression and discovered the cell type-selective open chromatin regions that correlate with these gene activation patterns. We confirmed cell type-selective expression on the protein level for two of the top hits from our screen. The “group specific protein” (GC; or vitamin D binding protein) was restricted to a-cells, while CHODL (chondrolectin) immunoreactivity was only present in b-cells. Furthermore, α-cell- and β-cell-selective ATAC-seq peaks were identified to overlap with known binding sites for islet transcription factors, as well as with common single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) previously identified as risk loci for type 2 diabetes. Conclusions: We have determined the genetic landscape of human α- and β-cells based on chromatin accessibility and transcript levels, which allowed for detection of novel α- and β-cell signature genes not previously known to be expressed in islets. Using fine-mapping of open chromatin, we have identified thousands of potential cis-regulatory elements that operate in an endocrine cell type-specific fashion.

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Chromatin accessibility differences between alpha, beta, and delta cells identifies common and cell type-specific enhancers

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