Project description:Signaling by the cytokine LIF and its downstream transcription factor, STAT3, prevents differentiation of pluripotent embryonic stem cells (ESCs) by opposing MAP kinase signaling. This contrasts with most cell types where STAT3 signaling induces differentiation. We find that STAT3 binding across the pluripotent genome is dependent upon Brg, the ATPase subunit of a specialized chromatin remodeling complex (esBAF) found in ESCs. Brg is required to establish chromatin accessibility at STAT3 binding targets, in essence preparing these sites to respond to LIF signaling. Moreover, Brg deletion leads to rapid Polycomb (PcG) binding and H3K27me3-mediated silencing of many Brg-activated targets genome-wide, including the target genes of the LIF signaling pathway. Hence, one crucial role of Brg in ESCs involves its ability to potentiate LIF signaling by opposing PcG. Contrary to expectations, Brg also facilitates PcG function at classical PcG target including all four Hox loci, reinforcing their repression in ESCs. These findings reveal that esBAF does not simply antagonize PcG, but rather, the two chromatin regulators act both antagonistically and synergistically with the common goal of supporting pluripotency.
Project description:Signaling by the cytokine LIF and its downstream transcription factor, STAT3, prevents differentiation of pluripotent embryonic stem cells (ESCs) by opposing MAP kinase signaling. This contrasts with most cell types where STAT3 signaling induces differentiation. We find that STAT3 binding across the pluripotent genome is dependent upon Brg, the ATPase subunit of a specialized chromatin remodeling complex (esBAF) found in ESCs. Brg is required to establish chromatin accessibility at STAT3 binding targets, in essence preparing these sites to respond to LIF signaling. Moreover, Brg deletion leads to rapid Polycomb (PcG) binding and H3K27me3-mediated silencing of many Brg-activated targets genome-wide, including the target genes of the LIF signaling pathway. Hence, one crucial role of Brg in ESCs involves its ability to potentiate LIF signaling by opposing PcG. Contrary to expectations, Brg also facilitates PcG function at classical PcG target including all four Hox loci, reinforcing their repression in ESCs. These findings reveal that esBAF does not simply antagonize PcG, but rather, the two chromatin regulators act both antagonistically and synergistically with the common goal of supporting pluripotency. Brg conditional embryonic stem cell (ESC) line was prepared from Brg(lox/lox);Actin-CreER mice that allow conditional deletion of Brg upon addition of 4-hydroxytamoxifen (4OHT, Sigma). Brg conditional ESCs were treated with 4-OHT for 72 hours to delete Brg. Brg protein levels completely abolished only at 48 hours (Brg-KO). RNA from Brg conditional ESCs (WT), Brg-KO ESCs, Brg conditional ESCs starved of LIF (Lif-WD) for 48 hours were extracted using Trizol reagent (Invitrogen), followed by RNeasy kit with DNaseI digestion to eliminate genomic DNA. Purified RNA was processed and hybridized onto Affymetrix Mouse MOE 4.0 3’ expression arrays according to the manufacturer's instructions. ChIP-Seq was used to detect and measure STAT3 occupancy and levels of H3K27me3 in the genome before and after the removal of the SWI/SNF ATPase Brg in mouse ESCs. Total of 4 samples (WT and KO STAT3; WT and KO H3K27me3). Input DNA was sequenced as control.
Project description:Distinctive SWI/SNF-like ATP-dependent chromatin remodeling esBAF complexes are indispensable for the maintenance and pluripotency of mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells. To understand the mechanism underlying the roles of these complexes in ES cells, we performed high-resolution genome-wide mapping of the core ATPase subunit, Brg, using ChIP-Seq technology. We find that that esBAF, as represented by Brg, binds to genes encoding components of the core ES transcriptional circuitry, including Polycomb group proteins. esBAF colocalizes extensively with Oct4, Sox2 and Nanog genome-wide, and shows distinct functional interactions with Oct4 and Sox2 at its target genes. Surprisingly, no significant colocalization of esBAF with PRC2 complexes, represented by Suz12, is observed. Lastly, esBAF co-binds with Stat3 and Smad1 genome-wide, consistent with a direct and critical role in LIF and BMP signaling essential to maintain pluripotency. Taken together, our studies indicate that esBAF is both an essential component of the core pluripotency transcriptional network, and might also be a critical component of the LIF and BMP signaling pathways essential for maintenance of self-renewal and pluripotency. Brg knockdown effect on expression, Brg ChIP-Seq
Project description:Distinctive SWI/SNF-like ATP-dependent chromatin remodeling esBAF complexes are indispensable for the maintenance and pluripotency of mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells. To understand the mechanism underlying the roles of these complexes in ES cells, we performed high-resolution genome-wide mapping of the core ATPase subunit, Brg, using ChIP-Seq technology. We find that that esBAF, as represented by Brg, binds to genes encoding components of the core ES transcriptional circuitry, including Polycomb group proteins. esBAF colocalizes extensively with Oct4, Sox2 and Nanog genome-wide, and shows distinct functional interactions with Oct4 and Sox2 at its target genes. Surprisingly, no significant colocalization of esBAF with PRC2 complexes, represented by Suz12, is observed. Lastly, esBAF co-binds with Stat3 and Smad1 genome-wide, consistent with a direct and critical role in LIF and BMP signaling essential to maintain pluripotency. Taken together, our studies indicate that esBAF is both an essential component of the core pluripotency transcriptional network, and might also be a critical component of the LIF and BMP signaling pathways essential for maintenance of self-renewal and pluripotency.
Project description:The self-renewal of Embryonic Stem Cells (ESCs) relies on a complex interplay of pluripotency transcription factors and their targets. LIF-activated STAT3 is a key player in regulating stemness by a number of mechanisms, including the transcriptional induction of pluripotency factors and the maintenance of a stern–like epigenetic landscape. However, not much is known about how STAT3 may be involved in the regulation of stem-cell specific non coding RNAs, an important player in the balance between pluripotency and differentiation. Here we identify in mouse ESCs a STAT3-dependent long non coding RNA, Lncenc1, which is required for pluripotency maintenance and mostly localizes to the cytoplasm. Lncenc1 acts as a positive feedback regulator of the LIF-STAT3 axis by competing for the binding of microRNA-128 to the 3’UTR of the core pluripotency factor Klf4 mRNA, enhancing its expression. Our results unveil a novel mechanism for LIF-STAT3-mediated pluripotency.
Project description:Mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) possess remarkable characteristics of unlimited self-renewal and pluripotency, which render them highly valuable for both fundamental research and clinical applications. A comprehensive understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying mESC function is of utmost importance. The Human Silence Hub (HUSH) complex, comprising FAM208A, MPP8, and periphilin, constitutes an epigenetic silencing complex involved in suppressing retroviruses and transposons during early embryonic development. However, its precise role in regulating mESC pluripotency and differentiation remains elusive. In this study, we generated homogenous miniIAA7 tagged Mpp8 mouse ES cell lines. Upon induction of MPP8 protein degradation, we observed impaired proliferation and reduced colony formation ability of mESCs. Furthermore, this study unveils the involvement of MPP8 in regulating the activity of the LIF/STAT3 signaling pathway and Nanog expression in mESCs. Finally, we provide compelling evidence that degradation of the MPP8 protein impairs the differentiation of mESC.
Project description:It has been well established that (LIF) is essential for maintaining naive pluripotency of ESCs. Oncostatin M (OSM) is a member of the IL-6 family of cytokines which share gp130 as a receptor subunit, and the OSM-gp130 complex can recruit either LIF receptor β or OSM receptor β. Here we show that OSM can completely replace LIF to maintain naive pluripotency of mouse ESCs. Mouse ESCs cultured in the presence of LIF or OSM not only express pluripotency genes at similar levels but also exhibit the same developmental pluripotency as evidenced by generation of germline competent chimeras, supporting previous findings. Moreover, we demonstrate that mESCs cultured in OSM produce viable all-ESC pups by tetraploid embryo complementation (TEC) assay, the most stringent functional test of authentic pluripotency. Furthermore, the telomere length and telomerase activity also are crucial for unlimited self-renewal and genomic stability of mESCs, and these do not differ in mESCs cultured under OSM or LIF. The transcriptome of mESCs cultured in OSM overall is very similar to that of LIF, and OSM activates Stat3 signaling pathway, like LIF. Additionally, OSM upregulates pentose and glucuronate interconversions, ascorbate and aldarate metabolism, steroid and retinol metabolism pathways. Although the significance of these pathways remains to be determined, our data shows that OSM can maintain the naive pluripotent stem cells in the absence of LIF.
Project description:Stat3+/+ and -/- ES cells were cultured in defined conditions and exposed to leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF) in a 24h timecourse to identify Stat3-independent targets of the self-renewal response to LIF signaling.
Project description:The pluripotency of mouse embryonic stem cells (ESC) and induced-pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) can be maintained by feeder cells, which secrete Leukemia Inhibitory Factor (LIF). We found that feeder cells provide a relatively low concentration (25 unit/ml) of LIF, which is insufficient to maintain the ESC/iPSC pluripotency in feeder free conditions. In order to identify additional factors involved in the maintenance of pluripotency, we carried out a global transcript expression profiling of mouse iPSC cultured on feeder cells and in feeder-free (LIF-treated) conditions. This identified 17 significantly differentially expressed genes (adjusted p-value<0.05) including 7 chemokines over-expressed in iPSC grown on feeder cells. Ectopic expression of these chemokines in iPSC revealed that CC chemokine ligand 2 (Ccl2) induced the key transcription factor genes for pluripotency, Klf4, Nanog, Sox2 and Tbx3. Further, addition of recombinant Ccl2 protein drastically increased the number of Nanog-GFP-positive iPSC grown in low LIF feeder free conditions. Interestingly, this effect was not observed in the absence of LIF. We further revealed that pluripotency promotion by Ccl2 is mediated by activating the Stat3-pathway followed by Klf4 up-regulation. We demonstrated that Ccl2 mediated increased pluripotency is independent of PI3K and MAPK pathways and that Tbx3 may be directly up-regulated by Klf4. Overall, Ccl2 cooperatively activates the Stat3-pathway with LIF in feeder free condition to maintain pluripotency for ESC/iPSC.
Project description:Super-enhancers (SEs) have been recognized as key epigenetic regulators underlying cancer stemness and malignant traits by aberrant transcriptional control and promising therapeutic targets against human cancers. However, the SE landscape and their roles during head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) development especially in cancer stem cells (CSCs) maintenance remain underexplored yet. Here, we identified leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF)-SE as a representative oncogenic SE to activate LIF transcription in HNSCC. LIF secreted from cancer cells and cancer-associated fibroblasts promotes cancer stemness by driving SOX2 transcription in an autocrine or paracrine manner, respectively. Mechanistically, enhancer elements E1, 2, 4 within LIF-SE recruited SOX2/SMAD3/BRD4/EP300 to facilitate LIF transcription; LIF activated downstream LIFR-STAT3 signaling to drive SOX2 transcription, thus forming a previously unknown regulatory feedback loop (LIF-SE-LIF/LIFR-STAT3-SOX2) to maintain LIF overexpression and CSCs stemness. Clinically, increased LIF abundance in clinical samples correlated with malignant clinicopathological features and patient prognosis; higher LIF concentrations in presurgical plasma were negatively associated with patient survival and dramatically diminished following cancer eradication. Therapeutically, pharmacological targeting LIF-SE-LIF/LIFR-STAT3 significantly impaired tumor growth and reduced CSC subpopulations in HNSCC xenograft and PDX models. Our findings reveal a hitherto uncharacterized LIF-SE-mediated auto-regulatory loop in regulating HNSCC stemness and highlight LIF as a novel non-invasive biomarker and potential therapeutic target for HNSCC.