Project description:In developing B lymphocytes, V(D)J recombination assembles IgH and Igk variable region exons from hundreds of gene segments clustered across mega-base Igh and Igk loci. V, D, and J segments are flanked by conserved recombination signal sequences (RSSs) that target RAG endonuclease. RAG orchestrates Igh V(D)J recombination upon capturing a JH-RSS within the JH-RSS-based recombination center (RC). JH-RSS orientation programs RAG to scan upstream D- and VH-containing chromatin linearly presented by cohesin-mediated loop extrusion. During Igh scanning, RAG robustly utilizes only D- or VH-RSSs in convergent ("deletional") orientation with JH-RSSs. However, for Vk-to-Jk joining, RAG utilizes Vk-RSSs from deletional- and inversional-oriented clusters, inconsistent with linear scanning. Here, we elucidate the Vk-to-Jk joining mechanism. Igk undergoes robust primary and secondary rearrangements, which confounds scanning assays. Thus, we engineered cells to undergo only primary Vk-to-Jk rearrangements and found that RAG-scanning from the primary Jk-RC terminates just 8kb upstream within the CTCF-Site-based Sis element. While Sis and the Jk-RC barely interacted with the Vk locus, the CTCF-site-based Cer element, 4kb upstream of Sis, interacted with various loop-extrusion impediments across the locus. Like VH-locus inversion, DJH inversion abrogated VH-to-DJH joining; yet Vk-locus or Jk inversion allowed robust Vk-to-Jk joining. Together, these experiments implicated loop extrusion in bringing Vks near Cer for short-range diffusion-mediated capture by RC-based RAG. To elucidate key mechanistic elements for diffusional V(D)J recombination in Igk versus Igh, we assayed Vk-to-JH and D-to-Jk rearrangements in hybrid Igh-Igk loci generated by targeted chromosomal translocations, and pinpointed remarkably strong Vk and Jk RSSs. Indeed, RSS replacements in hybrid or normal Igk and Igh loci confirmed ability of Igk versus Igh RSSs to promote robust diffusional joining. We propose that Igk evolved strong RSSs to mediate diffusional Vk-to-Jk joining; while Igh evolved weaker RSSs requisite for modulating VH joining by RAG scanning impediments.

Project description:RAG endonuclease initiates IgH locus (Igh) V(D)J assembly in progenitor (pro)-B cells by joining Ds to JHs, before joining upstream VHs to DJH intermediates. In mouse pro-B cells, the CTCF-binding element (CBE)-anchored chromatin loop domain at the 3’end of Igh contains an internal sub-domain spanning the 5’CBE anchor (IGCR1), the DHs, and a RAG-bound recombination center (RC). The RC comprises JH-proximal D (DQ52), 4 JHs, and the intronic enhancer (“iEmu”). Robust RAG cleavage is restricted to paired V(D)J segments flanked by complementary recombination signal sequences (12RSSs and 23RSSs). Ds are flanked downstream and upstream by 12RSSs that, respectively, mediate deletional joining with convergently-oriented JH-23RSSs and VH-23RSSs. Despite 12/23 compatibility, inversional D to JH joining via upstream D-12RSSs is rare. Plasmid-based assays attributed lack of inversional D to JH joining to sequence-based preference for downstream D-12RSSs, as opposed to putative linear scanning mechanisms. Given recent findings that RAG linearly scans convergent CBE-anchored chromatin loops, potentially formed by cohesin-mediated loop extrusion, we revisited a scanning role. Here, we report that JH-23RSS chromosomal orientation programs RC-bound RAG to linearly scan upstream chromatin in the 3’Igh sub-domain for convergently-oriented D-12RSSs and, thereby, to mediate deletional joining of all Ds, except RC-based DQ52 that joins by a diffusion-related mechanism. In a DQ52-based RC, formed in the absence of JHs, RAG bound by the downstream DQ52-RSS scans the downstream constant region exon-containing 3’Igh sub-domain in which scanning can be impeded by targeted nuclease-dead Cas9 (dCas9) binding, by transcription through repetitive Igh switch sequences, and by the 3’Igh CBE-based loop anchor. Notably, each scanning impediment focally increases RAG activity on potential substrate sequences within the impeded region. High resolution mapping of RC chromatin interactions reveals that such focal RAG targeting is associated with corresponding impediments to the loop extrusion process that drives chromatin past RC-bound RAG.

Dataset Information

Molecular Basis for Differential Igk Versus Igh V(D)J Joining Mechanisms [3C-HTGTS data]

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