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CTCF demarcates chicken embryonic α-globin gene autonomous silencing and contributes to adult stage-specific gene expression.

ABSTRACT: Genomic loci composed of more than one gene are frequently subjected to differential gene expression, with the chicken α-globin domain being a clear example. In the present study we aim to understand the globin switching mechanisms responsible for the epigenetic silencing of the embryonic π gene and the transcriptional activation of the adult α(D) and α(A) genes at the genomic domain level. In early stages, we describe a physical contact between the embryonic π gene and the distal 3' enhancer that is lost later during development. We show that such a level of regulation is achieved through the establishment of a DNA hypermethylation sub-domain that includes the embryonic gene and the adjacent genomic sequences. The multifunctional CCCTCC-binding factor (CTCF), which is located upstream of the α(D) gene promoter, delimits this sub-domain and creates a transition between the inactive sub-domain and the active sub-domain, which includes the adult α(D) gene. In avian-transformed erythroblast HD3 cells that are induced to differentiate, we found active DNA demethylation of the adult α(D) promoter, coincident with the incorporation of 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) and concomitant with adult gene transcriptional activation. These results suggest that autonomous silencing of the embryonic π gene is needed to facilitate an optimal topological conformation of the domain. This model proposes that CTCF is contributing to a specific chromatin configuration that is necessary for differential α-globin gene expression during development.

SUBMITTER: Valdes-Quezada C

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3883786 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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CTCF demarcates chicken embryonic α-globin gene autonomous silencing and contributes to adult stage-specific gene expression.

Valdes-Quezada Christian C Arriaga-Canon Cristian C Fonseca-Guzmán Yael Y Guerrero Georgina G Recillas-Targa Félix F

Epigenetics 20130703 8

Genomic loci composed of more than one gene are frequently subjected to differential gene expression, with the chicken α-globin domain being a clear example. In the present study we aim to understand the globin switching mechanisms responsible for the epigenetic silencing of the embryonic π gene and the transcriptional activation of the adult α(D) and α(A) genes at the genomic domain level. In early stages, we describe a physical contact between the embryonic π gene and the distal 3' enhancer th ...[more]

PMID: 23880533

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Project description:UNLABELLED: BACKGROUND: The ?-globin gene domains of vertebrate animals constitute popular models for studying the regulation of eukaryotic gene transcription. It has previously been shown that in the mouse the developmental switching of globin gene expression correlates with the reconfiguration of an active chromatin hub (ACH), a complex of promoters of transcribed genes with distant regulatory elements. Although it is likely that observations made in the mouse ?-globin gene domain are also relevant for this locus in other species, the validity of this supposition still lacks direct experimental evidence. Here, we have studied the spatial organization of the chicken ?-globin gene domain. This domain is of particular interest because it represents the perfect example of the so-called 'strong' tissue-specific gene domain flanked by insulators, which delimit the area of preferential sensitivity to DNase I in erythroid cells. RESULTS: Using chromosome conformation capture (3C), we have compared the spatial configuration of the ?-globin gene domain in chicken red blood cells (RBCs) expressing embryonic (3-day-old RBCs) and adult (9-day-old RBCs) ?-globin genes. In contrast to observations made in the mouse model, we found that in the chicken, the early embryonic ?-globin gene, ?, did not interact with the locus control region in RBCs of embryonic lineage (3-day RBCs), where this gene is actively transcribed. In contrast to the mouse model, a strong interaction of the promoter of another embryonic ?-globin gene, ?, with the promoter of the adult ?-globin gene, ?A, was observed in RBCs from both 3-day and 9-day chicken embryos. Finally, we have demonstrated that insulators flanking the chicken ?-globin gene domain from the upstream and from the downstream interact with each other, which places the area characterized by lineage-specific sensitivity to DNase I in a separate chromatin loop. CONCLUSIONS: Taken together, our results strongly support the ACH model but show that within a domain of tissue-specific genes, the active status of a promoter does not necessarily correlate with the recruitment of this promoter to the ACH.

Dataset Information

CTCF demarcates chicken embryonic α-globin gene autonomous silencing and contributes to adult stage-specific gene expression.

Publications

CTCF demarcates chicken embryonic α-globin gene autonomous silencing and contributes to adult stage-specific gene expression.

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