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Role of conserved non-coding DNA elements in the Foxp3 gene in regulatory T-cell fate.

ABSTRACT: Immune homeostasis is dependent on tight control over the size of a population of regulatory T (T(reg)) cells capable of suppressing over-exuberant immune responses. The T(reg) cell subset is comprised of cells that commit to the T(reg) lineage by upregulating the transcription factor Foxp3 either in the thymus (tT(reg)) or in the periphery (iT(reg)). Considering a central role for Foxp3 in T(reg) cell differentiation and function, we proposed that conserved non-coding DNA sequence (CNS) elements at the Foxp3 locus encode information defining the size, composition and stability of the T(reg) cell population. Here we describe the function of three Foxp3 CNS elements (CNS1-3) in T(reg) cell fate determination in mice. The pioneer element CNS3, which acts to potently increase the frequency of T(reg) cells generated in the thymus and the periphery, binds c-Rel in in vitro assays. In contrast, CNS1, which contains a TGF-beta-NFAT response element, is superfluous for tT(reg) cell differentiation, but has a prominent role in iT(reg) cell generation in gut-associated lymphoid tissues. CNS2, although dispensable for Foxp3 induction, is required for Foxp3 expression in the progeny of dividing T(reg) cells. Foxp3 binds to CNS2 in a Cbf-beta-Runx1 and CpG DNA demethylation-dependent manner, suggesting that Foxp3 recruitment to this 'cellular memory module' facilitates the heritable maintenance of the active state of the Foxp3 locus and, therefore, T(reg) lineage stability. Together, our studies demonstrate that the composition, size and maintenance of the T(reg) cell population are controlled by Foxp3 CNS elements engaged in response to distinct cell-extrinsic or -intrinsic cues.

SUBMITTER: Zheng Y

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2884187 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Role of conserved non-coding DNA elements in the Foxp3 gene in regulatory T-cell fate.

Zheng Ye Y Josefowicz Steven S Chaudhry Ashutosh A Peng Xiao P XP Forbush Katherine K Rudensky Alexander Y AY

Nature 20100113 7282

Immune homeostasis is dependent on tight control over the size of a population of regulatory T (T(reg)) cells capable of suppressing over-exuberant immune responses. The T(reg) cell subset is comprised of cells that commit to the T(reg) lineage by upregulating the transcription factor Foxp3 either in the thymus (tT(reg)) or in the periphery (iT(reg)). Considering a central role for Foxp3 in T(reg) cell differentiation and function, we proposed that conserved non-coding DNA sequence (CNS) element ...[more]

PMID: 20072126

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Project description:BackgroundParasites in the genus Theileria cause lymphoproliferative diseases in cattle, resulting in enormous socio-economic losses. The availability of the genome sequences and annotation for T. parva and T. annulata has facilitated the study of parasite biology and their relationship with host cell transformation and tropism. However, the mechanism of transcriptional regulation in this genus, which may be key to understanding fundamental aspects of its parasitology, remains poorly understood. In this study, we analyze the evolution of non-coding sequences in the Theileria genome and identify conserved sequence elements that may be involved in gene regulation of these parasitic species.ResultsIntergenic regions and introns in Theileria are short, and their length distributions are considerably right-skewed. Intergenic regions flanked by genes in 5'-5' orientation tend to be longer and slightly more AT-rich than those flanked by two stop codons; intergenic regions flanked by genes in 3'-5' orientation have intermediate values of length and AT composition. Intron position is negatively correlated with intron length, and positively correlated with GC content. Using stringent criteria, we identified a set of high-quality orthologous non-coding sequences between T. parva and T. annulata, and determined the distribution of selective constraints across regions, which are shown to be higher close to translation start sites. A positive correlation between constraint and length in both intergenic regions and introns suggests a tight control over length expansion of non-coding regions. Genome-wide searches for functional elements revealed several conserved motifs in intergenic regions of Theileria genomes. Two such motifs are preferentially located within the first 60 base pairs upstream of transcription start sites in T. parva, are preferentially associated with specific protein functional categories, and have significant similarity to know regulatory motifs in other species. These results suggest that these two motifs are likely to represent transcription factor binding sites in Theileria.ConclusionTheileria genomes are highly compact, with selection seemingly favoring short introns and intergenic regions. Three over-represented sequence motifs were independently identified in intergenic regions of both Theileria species, and the evidence suggests that at least two of them play a role in transcriptional control in T. parva. These are prime candidates for experimental validation of transcription factor binding sites in this single-celled eukaryotic parasite. Sequences similar to two of these Theileria motifs are conserved in Plasmodium hinting at the possibility of common regulatory machinery across the phylum Apicomplexa.

Dataset Information

Role of conserved non-coding DNA elements in the Foxp3 gene in regulatory T-cell fate.

Publications

Role of conserved non-coding DNA elements in the Foxp3 gene in regulatory T-cell fate.

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