Project description:Some of the earliest transcripts produced in fertilized human and mouse oocytes code for DUX, a double homeodomain protein that promotes embryonic genome activation (EGA). Deleting Dux by genome editing at the 1- to 2-cell stage in the mouse impairs EGA and blastocyst maturation. Here, we demonstrate that mice carrying homozygous Dux deletions display markedly reduced expression of DUX target genes and defects in both pre- and post-implantation development, with notably a disruption of the pace of the first few cell divisions and significant rates of late embryonic mortality. However, some Dux-/- embryos give raise to viable pups, indicating that DUX is important but not strictly essential for embryogenesis.
Project description:RNAseq was performed by to compare gene expression between wildtype and Smchd1 KO ES cells, the gene expression pattern in Dux KO mutants , Double KO mutant Tet-TKO mutants and Tet TKO plus SMCKHD1 KO mutants were analyzed by RNAseq.
Project description:We tested the transcriptome of embryos from WT and Dux KO mice including zygotes (hCG 28h), early 2-cell (hCG 31-32h), middle 2-cell(hCG 41-42h), late 2-cell(hCG 47-48h) and, Dux mRNA injected embryos including zygote(5h after injection, hCG 28h), early 4-cell(6h after injection, hCG 54h) and late 4-cell (17h after injection, hCG 65h) using the Covaris DNA shearing protocol for Smart-seq sequence library generation. We found that the activation of Dux is important but not essential for ZGA, but the silencing and elimination of Dux is strictly necessary for early embryonic development.
Project description:How maternal factors in oocytes trigger zygotic genome activation (ZGA) is a long-standing question in developmental biology. Recent studies in 2-cell like embryonic stem cells (2C-like cells) implicate that the DUX family transcription factors are key regulators of ZGA in placental mammals. To characterize the role of DUX in ZGA, we generated Dux cluster knockout (KO) mouse lines. Unexpectedly, we found both Dux zygotic KO (Z-KO) and maternal/zygotic KO (MZ-KO) embryos can survive to adulthood despite showing reduced developmental potential. Furthermore, transcriptome profiling of the MZ-KO embryos revealed that loss of DUX has minimal effect on ZGA and most DUX targets in 2C-like cells are normally activated in MZ-KO embryos. Thus, contrary to the key function in inducing 2C-like cells, our data indicate that DUX only has a minor role in ZGA and loss of DUX is compatible with mouse development.
Project description:Somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) enables gaining of totipotency by reprogramming nuclei of terminally differentiated donor cell. Recent studies have clearly demonstrated that intervention of epigenetic networks can significantly elevate both in vitro and in vivo development potential of NT embryos. Specifically, trichostatin A (TSA), a kind of histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACi), was proved to functionally works during cloning in various mammal systems. However, how it modulates histone acylation lacks careful illustration. Here, we systematically evaluate the effect and limitation of TSA during SCNT embryo development by generating genome-wide H3K9ac maps. In addition, a Dux-dependent 2-cell (2C) activation deficiency is observed in SCNT embryos as compared with their natural fertilized counterparts. Strikingly, a refined Dux supplement can successfully assist SCNT embryos in overcoming the 2C activation defect and further promotes the overall cloning efficiency. Together, our study for the first time reveals the regulation mechanism of histone marker H3K9ac in SCNT and provides the new insight of Dux during embryogenesis.
Project description:We report both DUX4 and Dux toxicity depend upon their ability to bind DNA and activate transcription. Chromatin immunoprecipitation of V5 epitope tagged human DUX4 and mouse Dux was performed in human myoblasts was analyzed using ChIP-Seq to identify their subsequent binding sites. We found that DUX4 and Dux bind 4-8% of identical sequences, while majority of the binding sites are unique to either DUX4 or Dux. Although small, this overlap could be due to their conserved abilioty to regualte primordial pathways that were essential for life and therefore maintained in both proteins despite their separate evolutionary paths. We performed ChIP-Seq analysis of human myoblasts transfected with plasmids encoding either epitope tagged human DUX4 (1 sample) and mouse Dux (1 sample). Illumina sequencing libraries were prepared from the ChIP and Input DNA, then resulting DNA libraries were quantified and sequenced and aligned to the human genome (hg19).
Project description:We report the RNA-seq experiments performed in human myoblasts transfected with human DUX4 and mouse Dux. Comparison of genes up- and down-regulated by DUX4 and Dux in human myoblasts to identify pathways similiarly regulated by both transcription factors.