Large organized chromatin K9-modifications (LOCKs) distinguish differentiated from embryonic stem cells
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ABSTRACT: Higher eukaryotes must adapt a totipotent genome to specialized cell types with a stable but limited repertoire of functions. One potential mechanism for lineage restriction is changes in chromatin, and differentiation-related chromatin changes have been observed for individual genes. We have taken a genome-wide view of histone H3 lysine-9 dimethylation (H3K9Me2). We find that differentiated tissues exhibit surprisingly large K9-modified regions (up to 4.9 Mb), that are highly conserved between human and mouse, and differentiation-specific, covering only ~4% of the genome in undifferentiated mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells, compared to 31% in differentiated ES cells, ~46% in liver and ~10% in brain. They require histone methyltransferase G9a, and are inversely related to expression of genes within them, and we term them Large Organized Chromatin K9-modifications (LOCKs). LOCKs are are substantially lost in cancer cell lines, and they may provide a cell type-heritable mechanism for phenotypic plasticity in development and disease.
ORGANISM(S): Mus musculus Homo sapiens
PROVIDER: GSE13445 | GEO | 2009/01/18
SECONDARY ACCESSION(S): PRJNA110043
REPOSITORIES: GEO
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