Non-coding loci without epigenomic signals can be essential for maintaining global chromatin organization and cell viability [single-cell RNA-seq]
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ABSTRACT: Non-coding loci without epigenomic signals can be essential for maintaining global chromatin organization and cell viability [single-cell RNA-seq]
Project description:Most noncoding regions of the human genome do not harbor any annotated element and are even not marked with any epigenomic or protein binding signal. However, an overlooked aspect of their possible role in stabilizing 3D chromatin organization has not been extensively studied. To illuminate their structural importance, we started with the noncoding regions forming many 3D contacts (referred to as hubs) and performed a CRISPR library screening to identify dozens of hubs essential for cell viability. Hi-C and single-cell transcriptomic analyses showed that their deletion could significantly alter chromatin organization and affect the expressions of distal genes. This study revealed the 3D structural importance of noncoding loci that are not associated with any functional element, providing a previously unknown mechanistic understanding of disease-associated genetic variations (GVs). Furthermore, our analyses also suggest a possible approach to develop therapeutics targeting disease-specific noncoding regions that are critical for disease cell survival.
Project description:Non-coding loci without epigenomic signals can be essential for maintaining global chromatin organization and cell viability [bulk RNA-seq]
Project description:Most non-coding regions of the human genome do not harbour any annotated element and are even not marked with any epigenomic or protein binding signal. However, an overlooked aspect of their possible role in stabilizing 3D chromatin organization has not been extensively studied. To illuminate their structural importance, we started with the non-coding regions forming many 3D contacts (referred to as hubs) and performed a CRISPR library screening to identify dozens of hubs essential for cell viability. Hi-C and single cell transcriptomic analyses showed that their deletion could significantly alter chromatin organization and impact the distal genes expression. This study revealed the 3D structural importance of non-coding loci that are not associated with any functional element, providing a new mechanistic understanding of disease-associated genetic variations (GVs), and we focused on single nucleotide variations. Furthermore, our analyses also suggest a powerful approach to develop "one-drug-multiple-targets" therapeutics targeting disease-specific non-coding regions.
Project description:Most non-coding regions of the human genome do not harbour any annotated element and are even not marked with any epigenomic or protein binding signal. However, an overlooked aspect of their possible role in stabilizing 3D chromatin organization has not been extensively studied. To illuminate their structural importance, we started with the non-coding regions forming many 3D contacts (referred to as hubs) and performed a CRISPR library screening to identify dozens of hubs essential for cell viability. Hi-C and single cell transcriptomic analyses showed that their deletion could significantly alter chromatin organization and impact the distal genes expression. This study revealed the 3D structural importance of non-coding loci that are not associated with any functional element, providing a new mechanistic understanding of disease-associated genetic variations (GVs), and we focused on single nucleotide variations. Furthermore, our analyses also suggest a powerful approach to develop "one-drug-multiple-targets" therapeutics targeting disease-specific non-coding regions.
Project description:In this study, we performed network analysis on Hi-C data and identified a group of non-coding regions forming many 3D contacts (referred to as hubs). Through a high-throughput CRISPR-Cas9 library screening by targeted deletion, we discovered that some hubs without any epigenetic marks were essential for cell growth and survival. Hi-C and single cell transcriptomic analyses showed that their deletion could significantly alter chromatin organization and impact the distal genes expression. This study revealed the 3D structural importance of non-coding loci that are not associated with any functional element, providing a new mechanistic understanding of disease-associated genetic variations. Furthermore, our analyses also suggest a powerful approach to develop "one-drug-multiple-targets" therapeutics targeting disease-specific non-coding regions.
Project description:Increasing evidence shows that promoters and enhancers could be related to 3D chromatin structure, thus affecting cellular functions. Except for their roles in forming canonical chromatin loops, promoters and enhancers have not been well studied regarding the maintenance of broad chromatin organization. Here, we focused on the active promoters/enhancers predicted to form many 3D contacts with other active promoters/enhancers (referred to as hotspots) and identified dozens of loci essential for cell growth and survival through CRISPR screening. We found that the deletion of an essential hotspot could lead to changes in broad chromatin organization and the expression of distal genes. We showed that the essentiality of hotspots does not result from their association with individual genes that are essential for cell viability but rather from their association with multiple dysregulated non-essential genes to synergistically impact cell fitness.
Project description:Live attenuated vaccines are often superior to dead vaccines, yet the immunological mechanisms remain largely obscure. We have recently uncovered an inherent capacity of antigen-presenting cells (APC) to discriminate live from killed bacteria by virtue of vita-PAMPs. Here we found that innate recognition of bacterial viability strongly promotes the differentiation of fully functional T follicular helper (TFH) cells. We identify TLR8 and its signaling adaptor MyD88 as critical sensor for bacterial viability in human APC, activation of which is required and sufficient to induce selective transcriptional remodeling and the production of TFH promoting signals like IL-12. Activators of other TLRs including licensed vaccine adjuvants fail to do so. Consequently, vita-PAMP receptors such as TLR8 represent promising targets for adjuvants to improve the efficacy of modern inanimate subunit vaccines. Human monocytes were infected with live or heat-killed E. coli for 6h.