SUV39H2 CONTROLS TROPHOBLAST STEM CELL FATE

ABSTRACT: The placenta is constructed through the orchestration of trophoblast stem (TS) cell expansion and differentiation along a multi-lineage pathway. Dynamic regulation of histone H3K9 methylation is pivotal to cell differentiation for many cell lineages, but little is known about its involvement in trophoblast development. Among the twelve-known histone H3K9 methyltransferases, only SUV39H2 exhibited robust differential expression in stem versus differentiated rat TS cells. SUV39H2 transcript and protein expression were high in the stem state and rapidly declined as TS cells differentiated. Disruption of SUV39H2 expression in TS cells led to prominent phenotypic changes. Suv39h2-specific shRNA knockdown resulted in an arrest in TS cell proliferation and activation of trophoblast cell differentiation. These observations were reinforced by flow cytometry and transcript profiling. Histone H3K9 methylation status at specific loci exhibiting differentiation-dependent gene expression were regulated by SUV39H2 and also represented sites for SUV39H2 occupancy. Analyses of SUV39H2 on ex vivo rat blastocyst development supported its role in regulating TS cell expansion and differentiation. Finally, we identified SUV39H2 as a downstream target of CDX2, a master regulator of trophoblast lineage development. In summary, our findings indicate that SUV39H2 contributes to the maintenance of the TS cell stem state and restrains trophoblast cell differentiation and thus serves as a contributor to the epigenetic regulation of hemochorial placental development.

ORGANISM(S): Rattus norvegicus

PROVIDER: GSE154701 | GEO | 2021/07/15

REPOSITORIES: GEO