The Evolution of Lineage-Specific Regulatory Activities in the Human Embryonic Limb
Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT:
ORGANISM(S): Mus musculus Homo sapiens Macaca mulatta
PROVIDER: GSE42413 | GEO | 2013/07/02
SECONDARY ACCESSION(S): PRJNA181397
REPOSITORIES: GEO
Similar Datasets
Project description:The evolution of human anatomical features likely involved changes in gene regulation during development. However, the nature and extent of human specific developmental regulatory functions remain unknown. We obtained a genome-wide view of cis regulatory evolution in human embryonic tissues by comparing the histone modification H3K27ac, which provides a quantitative readout of promoter and enhancer activity, during human, rhesus, and mouse limb development. Based on increased H3K27ac, we find that 13% of promoters and 11% of enhancers have gained activity on the human lineage since the human-rhesus divergence. These gains largely arose by modification of ancestral regulatory activities in the limb or potential co-option from other tissues and are likely to have heterogeneous genetic causes. Most enhancers that exhibit gain of activity in humans originated in mammals. Gains at promoters and enhancers in the human limb are associated with increased gene expression, suggesting they include molecular drivers of human morphological evolution. ChIP-Seq and RNA-Seq of autopod tissue of developing limb buds of Human (E33-E47), rhesus (E31-E36), and mouse (E10.5-E13.5). No raw data are provided for human samples. Human alignments were anonymized by removing sequence information and converting to bed format.
2013-07-02 | E-GEOD-42413 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:The regulatory elements that direct tissue-specific gene expression in the developing mammalian embryo remain largely unknown. Although chromatin profiling has proven to be a powerful method for mapping regulatory sequences in cultured cells, chromatin states characteristic of active developmental enhancers have not been directly identified in embryonic tissues. Here we use whole transcriptome analysis coupled with genome-wide profiling of H3K27ac and H3K27me3 to map chromatin states and enhancers in mouse embryonic forelimb and hindlimb. We show that gene expression differences between forelimb and hindlimb, and between limb and other embryonic cell types, are correlated with tissue-specific H3K27ac signatures at promoters and distal sites. Using H3K27ac profiles, we identified 28,377 putative enhancers, many of which are likely to be limb-specific based on strong enrichment near genes highly expressed in the limb and comparisons with tissue-specific p300 sites and known enhancers. We describe a chromatin state signature associated with active developmental enhancers, defined by high levels of H3K27ac marking, nucleosome displacement, hypersensitivity to sonication, and strong depletion of H3K27me3. We also find that developmental enhancers exhibit components of this signature, including hypersensitivity, H3K27ac enrichment and H3K27me3 depletion, at lower levels in tissues in which they are not active. Our results establish histone modification profiling as a tool for developmental enhancer discovery, and suggest that enhancers maintain an open chromatin state in multiple embryonic tissues independent of their activity level. Examination of genome wide H3K27ac and H3K27me3 histone modifications and gene expression in early mouse embryonic limb tissue.
2012-03-16 | E-GEOD-30641 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:Evolutionary changes in gene regulation during cortical development likely contributed to the expansion and specialization of the cortex in humans. However, the lack of a regulatory map of the human embryonic cortex has hindered identification of these changes and the biological processes they influenced. We performed genome-wide epigenetic profiling to compare promoter and enhancer activity during corticogenesis in human, rhesus, and mouse. We identified 2,855 promoters and 8,996 enhancers that have gained activity in human based on increased epigenetic marking. To detect biological pathways enriched for these changes, we mapped promoters and enhancers exhibiting epigenetic gains onto modules of co-expressed genes constructed using spatio-temporally rich expression data from developing human cortex. We identified multiple modules enriched in human lineage epigenetic gains. Gains in enriched modules were associated with genes functioning in neuronal proliferation and migration, cortical patterning, and the extracellular matrix. Gain-enriched modules also showed correlated gene expression patterns and similar transcription factor binding site enrichments in promoters and enhancers, suggesting they are connected by common regulatory mechanisms. Our results reveal coordinated patterns of potential regulatory changes associated with conserved developmental processes in corticogenesis, providing insight into human cortical evolution.
2015-03-06 | GSE63648 | GEO
Project description:Evolutionary changes in gene regulation during cortical development likely contributed to the expansion and specialization of the cortex. However, the lack of a regulatory map of the embryonic cortex has hindered identification of these changes and the biological processes they influenced. We performed genome-wide epigenetic profiling to compare promoter and enhancer activity during corticogenesis in rhesus and mouse. We identified 2,855 promoters and 8,996 enhancers that have gained activity in based on increased epigenetic marking. To detect biological pathways enriched for these changes, we mapped promoters and enhancers exhibiting epigenetic gains onto modules of co-expressed genes constructed using spatio-temporally rich expression data from developing cortex. We identified multiple modules enriched in lineage epigenetic gains. Gains in enriched modules were associated with genes functioning in neuronal proliferation and migration, cortical patterning, and the extracellular matrix. Gain-enriched modules also showed correlated gene expression patterns and similar transcription factor binding site enrichments in promoters and enhancers, suggesting they are connected by common regulatory mechanisms. Our results reveal coordinated patterns of potential regulatory changes associated with conserved developmental processes in corticogenesis, providing insight into cortical evolution.
2015-03-06 | GSE60838 | GEO
Project description:The regulatory elements that direct tissue-specific gene expression in the developing mammalian embryo remain largely unknown. Although chromatin profiling has proven to be a powerful method for mapping regulatory sequences in cultured cells, chromatin states characteristic of active developmental enhancers have not been directly identified in embryonic tissues. Here we use whole transcriptome analysis coupled with genome-wide profiling of H3K27ac and H3K27me3 to map chromatin states and enhancers in mouse embryonic forelimb and hindlimb. We show that gene expression differences between forelimb and hindlimb, and between limb and other embryonic cell types, are correlated with tissue-specific H3K27ac signatures at promoters and distal sites. Using H3K27ac profiles, we identified 28,377 putative enhancers, many of which are likely to be limb-specific based on strong enrichment near genes highly expressed in the limb and comparisons with tissue-specific p300 sites and known enhancers. We describe a chromatin state signature associated with active developmental enhancers, defined by high levels of H3K27ac marking, nucleosome displacement, hypersensitivity to sonication, and strong depletion of H3K27me3. We also find that developmental enhancers exhibit components of this signature, including hypersensitivity, H3K27ac enrichment and H3K27me3 depletion, at lower levels in tissues in which they are not active. Our results establish histone modification profiling as a tool for developmental enhancer discovery, and suggest that enhancers maintain an open chromatin state in multiple embryonic tissues independent of their activity level.
2012-03-16 | GSE30641 | GEO
Project description:While genome sequencing has identified numerous non-coding alterations between primate species, which of these are regulatory and potentially relevant to the evolution of the human brain is unclear. Here, we annotate cis-regulatory elements (CREs) in the human, rhesus macaque and chimpanzee genome using ChIP-sequencing in different anatomical parts of the adult brain. We find high similarity in the genomic positioning of CREs between rhesus macaque and humans, suggesting that the majority of these elements were already present in a common ancestor 25 million years ago. Most of the observed regulatory changes between humans and rhesus macaque occurred prior to the ancestral separation of humans and chimpanzee, leaving a modest set of regulatory elements with predicted human-specificity. Our data refine previous predictions and hypotheses on the consequences of genomic changes between primate species, and allow the identification of regulatory alterations relevant to the evolution of the brain. ChIP-Sequencing for H3K27ac on 8 distinct brain regions from human (three biological replicates per brain region), chimpanzee (two biological replicates per brain region) and rhesus macaque (three biological replicates per brain region).
2016-01-13 | E-GEOD-67978 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:Phenotypic differences within populations and between closely related species are often driven by variation and evolution of gene expression. However, most analyses have focused on the effects of genomic variation at cis-regulatory elements such as promoters and enhancers that control transcriptional activity, and little is understood about the influence of post-transcriptional processes on transcript evolution. Post-transcriptional modification of RNA by N6-methyladenosine (m6A) has been shown to be widespread throughout the transcriptome, and this reversible mark can affect transcript stability and translation dynamics. Here we analyze m6A mRNA modifications in lymphoblastoid cell lines (LCLs) from human, chimpanzee and rhesus, and we identify patterns of m6A evolution among species. We find that m6A evolution occurs in parallel with evolution of consensus RNA sequence motifs known to be associated with the enzymatic complexes that regulate m6A dynamics, and expression evolution of m6A-modified genes occurs in a parallel evolutionary pattern with m6A evolution. Further, genes modified by evolved m6A in humans are significantly enriched in transcriptional regulatory processes and disease related pathways, suggesting an important role in human biology for the evolution of m6A modification.
2016-10-14 | GSE70299 | GEO
Project description:HoxA genes exhibit central roles during development and causal mutations have been found in several human syndromes including limb malformation. Despite their importance, information on how these genes are regulated is lacking. Here, we report on the first identification of bona fide transcriptional enhancers controlling HoxA genes in developing limbs and show that these enhancers are grouped into distinct topological domains at the sub-megabase scale (sub-TADs). We provide evidence that target genes and regulatory elements physically interact with each other through contacts between sub-TADs rather than by the formation of discreet "DNA loops". Interestingly, there is no obvious relationship between the functional domains of the enhancers within the limb and how they are partitioned among the topological domains, suggesting that sub-TAD formation does not rely on enhancer activity. Moreover, we show that suppressing the transcriptional activity of enhancers does not abrogate their contacts with HoxA genes. Based on these data, we propose a model whereby chromatin architecture defines the functional landscapes of enhancers. From an evolutionary standpoint, our data points to the convergent evolution of HoxA and HoxD regulation in the fin-to-limb transition, one of the major morphological innovations in Vertebrates. The chromatin binding of the RNA polymerase II and the sub-unit Med12 of the Mediator complexe were analysed by ChIP-sequencing mouse distal E11.5 forelimb. This approach allowed us to identify the position of limb-specific enhancers.
2013-11-19 | E-GEOD-52483 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:The human cerebral cortex contains many cell types that likely underwent independent functional changes during evolution. However, cell-type–specific regulatory landscapes in the cortex re- main largely unexplored. Here we report epigenomic and tran- scriptomic analyses of the two main cortical neuronal subtypes, glutamatergic projection neurons and GABAergic interneurons, in human, chimpanzee, and rhesus macaque. Using genome- wide profiling of the H3K27ac histone modification, we identify neuron-subtype–specific regulatory elements that previously went undetected in bulk brain tissue samples. Human-specific regula- tory changes are uncovered in multiple genes, including those as- sociated with language, autism spectrum disorder, and drug addiction. We observe preferential evolutionary divergence in neuron subtype-specific regulatory elements and show that a sub- stantial fraction of pan-neuronal regulatory elements undergos subtype-specific evolutionary changes. This study sheds light on the interplay between regulatory evolution and cell- type–dependent gene-expression programs, and provides a re- source for further exploration of human brain evolution and function.
2020-10-03 | GSE158931 | GEO
Project description:The human cerebral cortex contains many cell types that likely underwent independent functional changes during evolution. However, cell-type–specific regulatory landscapes in the cortex re- main largely unexplored. Here we report epigenomic and tran- scriptomic analyses of the two main cortical neuronal subtypes, glutamatergic projection neurons and GABAergic interneurons, in human, chimpanzee, and rhesus macaque. Using genome- wide profiling of the H3K27ac histone modification, we identify neuron-subtype–specific regulatory elements that previously went undetected in bulk brain tissue samples. Human-specific regula- tory changes are uncovered in multiple genes, including those as- sociated with language, autism spectrum disorder, and drug addiction. We observe preferential evolutionary divergence in neuron subtype-specific regulatory elements and show that a sub- stantial fraction of pan-neuronal regulatory elements undergos subtype-specific evolutionary changes. This study sheds light on the interplay between regulatory evolution and cell- type–dependent gene-expression programs, and provides a re- source for further exploration of human brain evolution and function.
2020-10-03 | GSE158932 | GEO