Project description:Preterm birth, defined as delivery before the 37th week of gestation, is the most common cause of neonatal mortality and the second leading cause of death in children under five years of age. Preterm birth is associated with immediate and long term morbidity as well as growth and developmental delay. The lack of access to human myometrial samples during ongoing uncomplicated pregnancy seriously hampers proper understanding of the sequence of events leading to parturition initiation. In our previous work we used mouse as a model and profiled gene expression in mouse uterus from early E6.5 to late gestation E17.5. We identified Tbx2 as one of the putative upstream regulators during mid-gestation (E10.5, E12.5, E15.5). The role of TBX2 in human myometrium has not been investigated. In this study we identify the gene targets of TBX2 by overexpressing TBX2 in cultured telomerase immortalised myometrial cells followed by gene expression profiling using microarrays.
Project description:Despite being found in the notochord of several chordates, the roles of the Tbx2 subfamily of T-box transcription factors in the development of this tissue remain largely unknown. We explored the targets of the only Tbx2 subfamily member in Ciona intestinalis, Ci-Tbx2/3, by expressing mutant forms of the transcriptional regulator using the Ci-Bra promoter region. We produced a dominant interfering version of Ci-Tbx2/3 (Tbx2/3DBD) through expression of a truncated version consisting only of its DNA-binding domain (DBD) and a constitutive activator form by attaching the T-box of Ci-Tbx2/3 to the VP16 transactivation domain (Tbx2/3VP16). These constructs were introduced into 1-cell stage embryos and grown to the neurula (N) or mid-tailbud (mTb) stage to capture targets regulated throughout notochord morphogenesis. Ci-Tbx2/3 targets were ascertained using whole-genome custom Affymetrix microarrays to compare the transcription levels of Tbx2/3DBD and Tbx2/3VP16 expressing embryos to wild-type controls (Bra>GFP) at the neurula or mTb stages.
Project description:Here we demonstrate a previously unknown mechanism of TBX2-mediated gene repression in breast tumours, whereby TBX2 physically interacts with CoREST-associated proteins LSD1, HDAC1 and the ZNF217 oncogene. Through Chromatin Immunoprecipitation sequencing (ChIP-seq) we find that while over 80% of TBX2 binding sites are concentrated at promoters, these regions show remarkably no enrichment for the T-box element; rather TBX2-bound regions are biased toward a small number of non-T-box motifs, with the most abundant being Specificity Protein 1 (Sp1), EGR1 and Nuclear Transcription Factor Y (NF-Y). Furthermore, we uncover that Sp1 is crucial for recruitment of TBX2 to the NDRG1 promoter and subsequent repression of this gene. We also observe that ZNF217 cooccupies approximately 30% of TBX2-bound sites, a number of which contain RCOR1 and exhibit upregulation of the associated transcripts following disruption of TBX2/CoREST function. Overall these data highlight a novel potential therapeutic opportunity whereby poor-prognosis, TBX2 overexpressing breast tumours may be pharmacologically exploited by targeting the CoREST-dependent gene repression network, to recover normal growth control.
Project description:Background and Objectives: Therapeutic interventions targeting molecular factors involved in the transition from uterine quiescence to overt labour are not substantially reducing the rate of spontaneous preterm labour. The identification of novel rational therapeutic targets are essential to prevent the most common cause of neonatal mortality. Based on our previous work showing that Tbx2 (T-Box transcription factor 2) is a putative upstream regulator preceding progesterone withdrawal in mouse myometrium, we now investigate the role of TBX2 in human myometrium. Materials and Methods: RNA microarray analysis of (A) preterm human myometrium samples and (B) myometrial cells overexpressing TBX2 in vitro, combined with subsequent analysis of the two publicly available datasets of (C) Chan et al. and (D) Sharp et al. The effect of TBX2 overexpression on cytokines/chemokines secreted to the myometrium cell culture medium were determined by Luminex assay. Results: Analysis shows that overexpression of TBX2 in myometrial cells results in downregulation of TNFα- and interferon signalling. This downregulation is consistent with the decreased expression of cytokines and chemokines of which a subset has been previously associated with the inflammatory pathways relevant for human labour. In contrast, CXCL5 (C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 5), CCL21 and IL-6 (Interleukin 6), previously reported in relation to parturition, do not seem to be under TBX2 control. The combined bioinformatical analysis of the four mRNA datasets identifies a subset of upstream regulators common to both preterm and term labour under control of TBX2. Surprisingly, TBX2 mRNA levels are increased in preterm contractile myometrium. Conclusions: We identified a subset of upstream regulators common to both preterm and term labour that are activated in labour and repressed by TBX2. The increased TBX2 mRNA expression in myometrium collected during a preterm caesarean section while in spontaneous preterm labour compared to tissue harvested during iatrogenic preterm delivery does not fit the bioinformatical model. We can only explain this by speculating that the in vivo activity of TBX2 in human myometrium depends not only on the TBX2 expression levels but also on levels of the accessory proteins necessary for TBX2 activity.
Project description:Proteome data from 20 myometrium (in labor, IL, n = 10; non-labor, NL, n = 10) was performed by quantitative liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS).
Project description:We report the high-throughput profiling of Tbx2 binding sites in mouse melanoma B16 cells. We generated B16 clones that have endogenous Tbx2 tagged with 3xHA, and used HA antibody for immunoprecipitation. This study provides a high-quality genome-wide Tbx2 binding profile and helps further understand Tbx2 role in melanoma progression
Project description:Despite being found in the notochord of several chordates, the roles of the Tbx2 subfamily of T-box transcription factors in the development of this tissue remain largely unknown. We explored the targets of the only Tbx2 subfamily member in Ciona intestinalis, Ci-Tbx2/3, by expressing mutant forms of the transcriptional regulator using the Ci-Bra promoter region. We produced a dominant interfering version of Ci-Tbx2/3 (Tbx2/3DBD) through expression of a truncated version consisting only of its DNA-binding domain (DBD) and a constitutive activator form by attaching the T-box of Ci-Tbx2/3 to the VP16 transactivation domain (Tbx2/3VP16). These constructs were introduced into 1-cell stage embryos and grown to the neurula (N) or mid-tailbud (mTb) stage to capture targets regulated throughout notochord morphogenesis.
Project description:RNA-seq upon TBX2 knockdown in the neuroblastoma cell line CLB-GA. Cells were transduced with two different shRNAs (sh#2 and sh#4) targeting TBX2 and a non-targeting control (NTC), and selected with puromycin. Analysis was performed seven days upon TBX2 knockdown, including three biological replicates per condition.