Project description:Xist represents a paradigm for long non-coding RNA function in epigenetic regulation, although how it mediates X-chromosome inactivation (XCI) remains largely unexplained. Multiple Xist-RNA binding proteins have recently been identified, including SPEN/SHARP, whose knockdown has been associated with deficient XCI at multiple loci. Here we demonstrate that SPEN is a key orchestrator of XCI in vivo and unravel its mechanism of action. We show that SPEN is essential for initiating gene silencing on the X chromosome in preimplantation mouse embryos and embryonic stem cells. On the other hand, SPEN is dispensable for maintenance of XCI in neural progenitor cells, although it significantly dampens expression of genes that escape from XCI. During initiation of XCI, we show by live-cell imaging and CUT&RUN approaches that SPEN is immediately recruited to the X chromosome upon Xist up-regulation, where it is targeted to enhancers and promoters of actively transcribed genes. SPEN rapidly disengages from chromatin once silencing is accomplished, implying a need for active transcription to tether it to chromatin. We define SPEN’s SPOC (SPEN paralog and ortholog C-terminal) domain as a major effector of SPEN’s gene silencing function, and show that artificial tethering of SPOC to Xist RNA is sufficient to mediate X-linked gene silencing. We identify SPOC’s protein partners which include NCOR/SMRT, the m6A RNA methylation machinery, the NuRD complex, RNA polymerase II and factors involved in regulation of transcription initiation and elongation. We propose that SPEN acts as a molecular integrator for initiation of XCI, bridging Xist RNA with the transcription machinery as well as nucleosome remodelers and histone deacetylases, at active enhancers and promoters.
Project description:XIST long non-coding RNA is responsible for X chromosome inactivation (XCI) in placental mammals, yet it accumulates on both X chromosomes in human female pre-implantation embryos without triggering X chromosome silencing. The long non-coding RNA XACT co-accumulates with XIST on active Xs and may antagonize XIST function. Here we used human ES cells in a naïve state of pluripotency to assess the function of XIST and XACT in shaping the X chromosome chromatin and transcriptional landscapes during pre-implantation development. We show that XIST triggers the deposition of polycomb-mediated repressive histone modifications and attenuates transcription of most X-linked genes in a SPEN-dependent manner, while XACT deficiency does not significantly affect XIST activity or X-linked gene expression. Our study demonstrates that XIST is functional prior to XCI, confirms the existence of a transient process of X chromosome dosage compensation, and reveals that X chromosome inactivation and dampening rely on the same set of factors.
