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SMARCAD1 ATPase activity is required to silence endogenous retroviruses in embryonic stem cells.

ABSTRACT: Endogenous retroviruses (ERVs) can confer benefits to their host but present a threat to genome integrity if not regulated correctly. Here we identify the SWI/SNF-like remodeler SMARCAD1 as a key factor in the control of ERVs in embryonic stem cells. SMARCAD1 is enriched at ERV subfamilies class I and II, particularly at active intracisternal A-type particles (IAPs), where it preserves repressive histone methylation marks. Depletion of SMARCAD1 results in de-repression of IAPs and adjacent genes. Recruitment of SMARCAD1 to ERVs is dependent on KAP1, a central component of the silencing machinery. SMARCAD1 and KAP1 occupancy at ERVs is co-dependent and requires the ATPase function of SMARCAD1. Our findings uncover a role for the enzymatic activity of SMARCAD1 in cooperating with KAP1 to silence ERVs. This reveals ATP-dependent chromatin remodeling as an integral step in retrotransposon regulation in stem cells and advances our understanding of the mechanisms driving heterochromatin establishment.

SUBMITTER: Sachs P

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6430823 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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SMARCAD1 ATPase activity is required to silence endogenous retroviruses in embryonic stem cells.

Sachs Parysatis P Ding Dong D Bergmaier Philipp P Lamp Boris B Schlagheck Christina C Finkernagel Florian F Nist Andrea A Stiewe Thorsten T Mermoud Jacqueline E JE

Nature communications 20190322 1

Endogenous retroviruses (ERVs) can confer benefits to their host but present a threat to genome integrity if not regulated correctly. Here we identify the SWI/SNF-like remodeler SMARCAD1 as a key factor in the control of ERVs in embryonic stem cells. SMARCAD1 is enriched at ERV subfamilies class I and II, particularly at active intracisternal A-type particles (IAPs), where it preserves repressive histone methylation marks. Depletion of SMARCAD1 results in de-repression of IAPs and adjacent genes ...[more]

PMID: 30902974

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Project description:Background: MORC proteins are involved in epigenetic gene silencing in a wide variety of eukaryotic organisms. Deletion of MORCs result in several developmental abnormalities and their dysregulation has been implicated in developmental disease and multiple cancers. Specifically, mutations of mammalian MORC3 have been associated with immune system defects, Down syndrome and human cancers such as bladder, uterine, stomach, and lung cancers, and diffuse large B cell lymphomas. While previous studies have shown that MORC3 binds to H3K4me3 in vitro and overlaps with H3K4me3 ChIP-seq peaks in mouse embryonic stem cells, the mechanism by which MORC3 regulates gene expression is unknown. Results: In this study, we find that MORC3 functions as an epigenetic silencer of endogenous retroviruses (ERVs) in mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs). Loss of MORC3 results in upregulation of ERVs, specifically those belonging to the LTR class of retrotransposons. Using ChIP-seq, we measure the genome-wide localization of MORC3 in wild-type cells and find that MORC3 binds to ERVs suggesting its direct role in regulating ERV expression. Previous studies have shown that these ERVs are marked by repressive histone mark H3K9me3 which plays a key role in their silencing. Interestingly, we find that the levels of H3K9me3 do not change substantially upon the loss of MORC3 indicating that MORC3 possibly acts downstream of the TRIM28/SETDB1 complex that deposits H3K9me3 at these loci. Instead, we discover that loss of MORC3 results in increased chromatin accessibility at the ERVs suggesting that MORC3 silences ERVs by compacting DNA in mESCs. Conclusions: Our results reveal MORC3 as a novel regulator of ERV silencing in mouse embryonic stem cells. As early mammalian development is characterized by dynamic changes in ERV expression, the role of MORC3 in silencing ERVs is exciting and could potentially explain the abnormalities observed due to its misregulation during mammalian development.

Dataset Information

SMARCAD1 ATPase activity is required to silence endogenous retroviruses in embryonic stem cells.

Publications

SMARCAD1 ATPase activity is required to silence endogenous retroviruses in embryonic stem cells.

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