Project description:Meiotic recombination starts with the formation of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) at specific genomic locations that correspond to PRDM9-binding sites. The molecular steps occurring from PRDM9 binding to DSB formation are unknown. Using proteomic approaches to find PRDM9 partners, we identified HELLS, a member of the SNF2-like family of chromatin remodelers. Upon functional analyses during mouse male meiosis, we demonstrated that HELLS is required for PRDM9 binding and DSB activity at PRDM9 sites. However, HELLS is not required for DSB activity at PRDM9-independent sites. HELLS is also essential for 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) enrichment at PRDM9 sites. Analyses of 5hmC in mice deficient for SPO11, which catalyzes DSB formation, and in PRDM9 methyltransferase deficient mice reveal that 5hmC is triggered at DSB-prone sites upon PRDM9 binding and histone modification, but independent of DSB activity. These findings highlight the complex regulation of the chromatin and epigenetic environments at PRDM9-specified hotspots.
Project description:Chromatin barriers prevent spurious interactions between regulatory elements and DNA-binding proteins. One such barrier, whose mechanism for overcoming is poorly understood, is access to recombination hotspots during meiosis. Here we identify that the DNA-binding protein PRDM9 and chromatin remodeler HELLS function together to open chromatin at hotspots providing access to the DNA double-strand break (DSB) machinery. Recombination hotspots are decorated by a unique combination of histone modifications, not found at other regulatory elements. HELLS is recruited by PRDM9, and is necessary for both histone modification and DNA accessibility at hotspots. In male mice lacking HELLS, DSBs are retargeted to other sites of open chromatin, leading to germ cell death and sterility. Together, these data provide a model for hotspot activation where HELLS and PRDM9 function as a pioneer complex to create a unique epigenomic environment to open chromatin in preparation for proper placement and repair of DSBs.
Project description:PRDM9 specifies the sites of meiotic DNA double strand break that initiate meiotic recombination in mice and humans. PRDM9 is known to bind to specific DNA sequences with its DNA binding domain, to induce H3K4me3 and H3K36me3 to adjacent nucleosomes through its methyltransferase activity, and to recruit or activate the meiotic DSB machinery. To understand how PRDM9 executes these various steps, we set up to identify its partners. This was performed by a proteomic approach where protein extracts from mouse testis were immunoprecipitated with anti-PRDM9 antibody for mass spectrometry analysis.
Project description:We report testis H3K4me3 enrichment in an F1 male from a C57BL/6J (B6) x CAST/Eij (CAST) cross (B6 mother, CAST father). This mouse is heterozygous at PRDM9 for a humanized allele (Davies et al. Nature 2016) and the CAST allele. After filtering of promoter H3K4me3 regions, these data serve as a measure of PRDM9 binding enrichment on each homologue. We found that both crossovers and non-crossovers (observed by sequencing F2/F4/F5 genomic DNA) are depleted at "asymmetric" Double-Strand Break hotspots where PRDM9 primarily binds only one of the two homologues. This proves that PRDM9 plays an important role in promoting inter-homologue interactions and can explain why increasing PRDM9 binding asymmetry predicts hybrid infertility. See Li, Bitoun, Altemose et al. 2018 (pending) for a complete summary.
Project description:The activating E2F-transcription factors are best known for their dependence on the Retinoblastoma protein and their role in cellular proliferation. E2F3 is uniquely amplified in specific human tumours where its expression is inversely correlated with the survival of patients. Here, E2F3 interaction partners were identified by mass spectrometric analysis. We show that the SNF2-like HELLS interacts with E2F3 in vivo and cooperates with its oncogenic functions. Depletion of HELLS severely perturbs the induction of E2F-target genes, hinders cell cycle re-entry and growth. Using chromatin immmunoprecipitation coupled to sequencing we identified genome-wide targets of HELLS and E2F3. Our analysis revealed that HELLS binds near promoters of active genes, including the trithorax-related MLL1, and co-regulates E2F3-dependent genes. Our analysis is the first to link HELLS with E2F-controlled processes that are critical to establish a proliferative tumour circuitry. Strikingly, just as E2F3, HELLS is overexpressed in human tumours including prostate cancer, indicating that either factor may contribute to the malignant progression of tumours. Our work reveals that HELLS is important for E2F3 in tumour cell proliferation.
Project description:PRDM9 is a histone methyltransferase expressed in meiotic germ cells that determines the location of genetic recombination hotspots through binding of its allele-specific DNA binding domain. Here we characterize the genome-wide chromatin modification for two human PRDM9 alleles (A and C) in human cell lines. HEK293 cells were transfected with both alleles and an empty vector control. Resulting chromatin was subjected to H3K4me3 ChIP followed by high-throughput sequencing. We find that different PRDM9 allele largely modified chromatin in entirely different genomic regions in somatic cells determined by the protein's zinc-finger DNA binding domains. Many of the allele-specific peaks overlap sites of meiotic double-strand breaks found in vivo in human germ cells suggesting that transient expression of PRDM9 in somatic cells can reflect binding in vivo. Identify PRDM9-dependent H3K4me3 sites by comparing modified chromatin after expression of different human PRDM9 alleles in HEK293 cells.
Project description:The activating E2F-transcription factors are best known for their dependence on the Retinoblastoma protein and their role in cellular proliferation. E2F3 is uniquely amplified in specific human tumours where its expression is inversely correlated with the survival of patients. Here, E2F3 interaction partners were identified by mass spectrometric analysis. We show that the SNF2-like HELLS interacts with E2F3 in vivo and cooperates with its oncogenic functions. Depletion of HELLS severely perturbs the induction of E2F-target genes, hinders cell cycle re-entry and growth. Using chromatin immmunoprecipitation coupled to sequencing we identified genome-wide targets of HELLS and E2F3. Our analysis revealed that HELLS binds near promoters of active genes, including the trithorax-related MLL1, and co-regulates E2F3-dependent genes. Our analysis is the first to link HELLS with E2F-controlled processes that are critical to establish a proliferative tumour circuitry. Strikingly, just as E2F3, HELLS is overexpressed in human tumours including prostate cancer, indicating that either factor may contribute to the malignant progression of tumours. Our work reveals that HELLS is important for E2F3 in tumour cell proliferation. Examination of E2F3, Hells, and H3K27me3 in 2 cell types.
Project description:We used novel genetically engineered mouse models to investigate the role of HELLS during tumorigenesis. Loss of HELLS drastically decreased the incidence of retinoblastoma, delayed tumor progression, and increased overall survival. Tumors from Rb1/p107 DKO and Rb1/p107/Hells TKO mice were analyzed for gene expression using RNA-seq.