Project description:Xist orchestrates X chromosome inactivation, a process that entails chromosome-wide silencing and remodeling of the 3-dimensional structure of the X chromosome. Yet, it remains unclear whether these changes in nuclear structure are mediated by Xist and whether they are required for silencing. Here we show that Xist directly interacts with the Lamin B Receptor (LBR), an integral component of the nuclear lamina, and that this interaction is required for Xist-mediated silencing. We show that this interaction recruits the inactive X to the nuclear lamina and by doing so enables Xist to spread to actively transcribed genes across the X. Our results demonstrate that lamina recruitment changes the accessibility of DNA thereby enabling Xist, and its silencing proteins, to spread across the X to silence transcription. We examined the genomic localization of the Xist lncRNA using RNA Antisense Purification (RAP) in male mouse ES cells where the endogenous Xist promoter is replaced by a tet-inducible one (pSM33) containing 1) wild-type Xist (WT), 2) A-repeat deletion Xist (dA), 3) LBR binding site deletion Xist (dLBS), 4) dLBS-Xist rescued with LMNB1 (LMNB1Res), 5) LBR CRISPRi knock down (LBRKD), or 6) SHARP CRISPRi knock down (SHARPKD).
Project description:Xist orchestrates X chromosome inactivation, a process that entails chromosome-wide silencing and remodeling of the 3-dimensional structure of the X chromosome. Yet, it remains unclear whether these changes in nuclear structure are mediated by Xist and whether they are required for silencing. Here we show that Xist directly interacts with the Lamin B Receptor (LBR), an integral component of the nuclear lamina, and that this interaction is required for Xist-mediated silencing. We show that this interaction recruits the inactive X to the nuclear lamina and by doing so enables Xist to spread to actively transcribed genes across the X. Our results demonstrate that lamina recruitment changes the accessibility of DNA thereby enabling Xist, and its silencing proteins, to spread across the X to silence transcription.
Project description:Xist orchestrates X chromosome inactivation, a process that entails chromosome-wide silencing and remodeling of the 3-dimensional structure of the X chromosome. Yet, it remains unclear whether these changes in nuclear structure are mediated by Xist and whether they are required for silencing. Here we show that Xist directly interacts with the Lamin B Receptor (LBR), an integral component of the nuclear lamina, and that this interaction is required for Xist-mediated silencing. We show that this interaction recruits the inactive X to the nuclear lamina and by doing so enables Xist to spread to actively transcribed genes across the X. Our results demonstrate that lamina recruitment changes the accessibility of DNA thereby enabling Xist, and its silencing proteins, to spread across the X to silence transcription.
Project description:Cellular binary fate decisions require the progeny to silence genes associated with the alternative fate. The major subsets of alpha:beta T cells have been extensively studied as a model system for fate decisions. While the transcription factor RUNX3 is required for the initiation of Cd4 silencing in CD8 T cell progenitors, it is not required to maintain the silencing of Cd4 and other helper T lineage genes. The other runt domain containing protein, RUNX1, silences Cd4 in an earlier T cell progenitor, but this silencing is reversed whereas the gene silencing after RUNX3 expression is not reverse. Therefore, we hypothesized that RUNX3 and not RUNX1 recruits other factors that maintains the silencing of helper T lineage genes in CD8 T cells. To this end, we performed a proteomics screen of RUNX1 and RUNX3 to determine candidate silencing factors.
Project description:At initiation of X chromosome inactivation (XCI), Xist is monoallelically upregulated from the future inactive X (Xi) chromosome, overcoming repression by its antisense transcript Tsix. Xist recruits various chromatin remodelers, amongst them SPEN, which are involved in silencing of X-linked genes in cis and establishment of the Xi. Here, we show that SPEN plays an important role in the initiation of XCI. Spen null female mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) are defective in Xist upregulation upon differentiation. We find that Xist-mediated SPEN recruitment to the Xi chromosome happens very early in XCI, and that SPEN-mediated silencing of the Tsix promoter is required for Xist upregulation. Accordingly, failed Xist upregulation in Spen-/- ESCs can be rescued by concomitant removal of Tsix. These findings indicate that SPEN is not only required for the establishment of the Xi, but is also crucial in the initiation of the XCI process.
Project description:At initiation of X chromosome inactivation (XCI), Xist is monoallelically upregulated from the future inactive X (Xi) chromosome, overcoming repression by its antisense transcript Tsix. Xist recruits various chromatin remodelers, amongst them SPEN, which are involved in silencing of X-linked genes in cis and establishment of the Xi. Here, we show that SPEN plays an important role in the initiation of XCI. Spen null female mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) are defective in Xist upregulation upon differentiation. We find that Xist-mediated SPEN recruitment to the Xi chromosome happens very early in XCI, and that SPEN-mediated silencing of the Tsix promoter is required for Xist upregulation. Accordingly, failed Xist upregulation in Spen-/- ESCs can be rescued by concomitant removal of Tsix. These findings indicate that SPEN is not only required for the establishment of the Xi, but is also crucial in the initiation of the XCI process.
Project description:To initiate X-chromosome inactivation (XCI), the long non-coding RNA Xist mediates chromosome-wide gene silencing of one X chromosome in female mammals to equalize gene dosage between the sexes. The efficiency of gene silencing, however is highly variable across genes, with some genes even escaping XCI in somatic cells. A gene’s susceptibility to Xist-mediated silencing appears to be determined by a complex interplay of epigenetic and genomic features; however, the underlying rules remain poorly understood. We have quantified chromosome-wide gene silencing kinetics at the level of the nascent transcriptome using allele-specific Precision nuclear Run-On sequencing (PRO-seq). We have developed a Random Forest machine learning model that can predict the measured silencing dynamics based on a large set of epigenetic and genomic features and tested its predictive power experimentally. While the genomic distance to the Xist locus is the prime determinant of the speed of gene silencing, we find that also pre-marking of gene promoters with polycomb complexes is associated with fast silencing. Moreover, a series of features associated with active transcription and the O-GlcNAc transferase Ogt are enriched at rapidly silenced genes. Our machine learning approach can thus uncover the complex combinatorial rules underlying gene silencing during X inactivation.
Project description:Xist is indispensable for X chromosome inactivation (XCI) in female mammalian cells. However, how Xist RNA directs chromosome-wide transcriptional inactivation of the X chromosome is largely unknown. Here, to study chromosome inactivation by Xist, we generated a system where ectopic Xist expression can be induced from several genomic contexts in aneuploid mouse ES cells. We found that ectopic Xist expression from any location on the X chromosome faithfully recapitulated endogenous XCI, showing the potency of Xist to initiate XCI. Genes that escape XCI remain consistently transcriptionally active upon ectopic XCI, regardless of their position relative to Xist transgenes, and the enrichment of CTCF at their promoters is implicated in directing XCI escape. Xist expression from autosomes facilitates their transcriptional silencing to different degrees, and gene density in proximity of the Xist transcription locus plays a central role in determining the efficiency of gene inactivation. We also show that the enrichment of LINE elements together with a specific chromatin environment facilitates Xist-mediated silencing of both X-linked and autosomal genes. These findings provide new insights into the epigenetic mechanisms that mediate XCI and identify genomic features that promote Xist-mediated chromosome-wide gene inactivation
Project description:To characterize the genetic basis of hybrid male sterility in detail, we used a systems genetics approach, integrating mapping of gene expression traits with sterility phenotypes and QTL. We measured genome-wide testis expression in 305 male F2s from a cross between wild-derived inbred strains of M. musculus musculus and M. m. domesticus. We identified several thousand cis- and trans-acting QTL contributing to expression variation (eQTL). Many trans eQTL cluster into eleven ‘hotspots,’ seven of which co-localize with QTL for sterility phenotypes identified in the cross. The number and clustering of trans eQTL - but not cis eQTL - were substantially lower when mapping was restricted to a ‘fertile’ subset of mice, providing evidence that trans eQTL hotspots are related to sterility. Functional annotation of transcripts with eQTL provides insights into the biological processes disrupted by sterility loci and guides prioritization of candidate genes. Using a conditional mapping approach, we identified eQTL dependent on interactions between loci, revealing a complex system of epistasis. Our results illuminate established patterns, including the role of the X chromosome in hybrid sterility.