Dissecting the retinoid-induced differentiation of F9 embryonal stem cells by integrative genomics.
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ABSTRACT: Retinoic acid (RA) triggers physiological processes by activating heterodimeric transcription factors (TFs) comprising retinoic acid receptor (RAR?, ?, ?) and retinoid X receptor (RXR?, ?, ?). How a single signal induces highly complex temporally controlled networks that ultimately orchestrate physiological processes is unclear. Using an RA-inducible differentiation model, we defined the temporal changes in the genome-wide binding patterns of RAR? and RXR? and correlated them with transcription regulation. Unexpectedly, both receptors displayed a highly dynamic binding, with different RXR? heterodimers targeting identical loci. Comparison of RAR? and RXR? co-binding at RA-regulated genes identified putative RXR?-RAR? target genes that were validated with subtype-selective agonists. Gene-regulatory decisions during differentiation were inferred from TF-target gene information and temporal gene expression. This analysis revealed six distinct co-expression paths of which RXR?-RAR? is associated with transcription activation, while Sox2 and Egr1 were predicted to regulate repression. Finally, RXR?-RAR? regulatory networks were reconstructed through integration of functional co-citations. Our analysis provides a dynamic view of RA signalling during cell differentiation, reveals RAR heterodimer dynamics and promiscuity, and predicts decisions that diversify the RA signal into distinct gene-regulatory programs.
SUBMITTER: Mendoza-Parra MA
PROVIDER: S-EPMC3261707 | biostudies-literature | 2011
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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