Cell-type-dependent repression of yeast a-specific genes requires Itc1p, a subunit of the Isw2p–Itc1p chromatin remodelling complex

In the work presented here, we investigated how bromodomain-containing protein 7 (BRD7), a subunit associated with switch/sucrose non-fermentable (SWI/SNF) chromatin remodelling complexes, is trafficked between cellular compartments during embryo development. SWI/SNF complexes are multi-subunit complexes that contain a core catalytic subunit (SWI/SNF related, Matrix associated, Actin dependent Regulator of Chromatin, subfamily A, member 4, or member 2; SMARCA4 or SMARCA2) and a collection of additional subunits that guide the complexes to their appropriate loci; BRD7 is one of these additional subunits. We hypothesised that BRD7 is exported from the nuclei of porcine oocytes and embryos in a Chromosome Region Maintenance 1 (CRM1)-dependent manner and imported into the nuclei using the karyopherin α/β1 heterodimer. Porcine oocytes and embryos were treated with inhibitors of CRM1-mediated nuclear export and karyopherin α/β1-mediated nuclear import to test this hypothesis. An RNA interference assay and a dominant negative overexpression assay were also performed to determine if karyopherin α7 serves a specific role in BRD7 trafficking. Our findings indicate that BRD7 shuttles between nuclear and cytoplasmic compartments during cleavage development. The shuttling of BRD7 indicates that it serves a unique role in remodelling chromatin during this developmental window.

Download Full-text

Antagonising Chromatin Remodelling Activities in the Regulation of Mammalian Ribosomal Transcription

Genes ◽

10.3390/genes12070961 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (7) ◽

pp. 961

Author(s):

Kanwal Tariq ◽

Ann-Kristin Östlund Farrants

Keyword(s):

Stress Responses ◽

Ribosomal Gene ◽

Chromatin Remodelling ◽

Chromatin State ◽

Rrna Gene ◽

Open Chromatin ◽

Histone Chaperones ◽

Embryonic Cells ◽

Cell Type ◽

Chromatin States

Ribosomal transcription constitutes the major energy consuming process in cells and is regulated in response to proliferation, differentiation and metabolic conditions by several signalling pathways. These act on the transcription machinery but also on chromatin factors and ncRNA. The many ribosomal gene repeats are organised in a number of different chromatin states; active, poised, pseudosilent and repressed gene repeats. Some of these chromatin states are unique to the 47rRNA gene repeat and do not occur at other locations in the genome, such as the active state organised with the HMG protein UBF whereas other chromatin state are nucleosomal, harbouring both active and inactive histone marks. The number of repeats in a certain state varies on developmental stage and cell type; embryonic cells have more rRNA gene repeats organised in an open chromatin state, which is replaced by heterochromatin during differentiation, establishing different states depending on cell type. The 47S rRNA gene transcription is regulated in different ways depending on stimulus and chromatin state of individual gene repeats. This review will discuss the present knowledge about factors involved, such as chromatin remodelling factors NuRD, NoRC, CSB, B-WICH, histone modifying enzymes and histone chaperones, in altering gene expression and switching chromatin states in proliferation, differentiation, metabolic changes and stress responses.

Download Full-text

BRM: the core ATPase subunit of SWI/SNF chromatin-remodelling complex—a tumour suppressor or tumour-promoting factor?

Epigenetics & Chromatin ◽

10.1186/s13072-019-0315-4 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 12 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Iga Jancewicz ◽

Janusz A. Siedlecki ◽

Tomasz J. Sarnowski ◽

Elzbieta Sarnowska

Keyword(s):

Synthetic Lethality ◽

Susceptibility Gene ◽

Chromatin Remodelling ◽

Tumour Suppressor ◽

Disease Stage ◽

Cancer Type ◽

Missense Mutations ◽

Loss Of Function ◽

Atpase Subunit ◽

Chromatin Remodelling Complex

Abstract BRM (BRAHMA) is a core, SWI2/SNF2-type ATPase subunit of SWI/SNF chromatin-remodelling complex (CRC) involved in various important regulatory processes including development. Mutations in SMARCA2, a BRM-encoding gene as well as overexpression or epigenetic silencing were found in various human diseases including cancer. Missense mutations in SMARCA2 gene were recently connected with occurrence of Nicolaides–Baraitser genetics syndrome. By contrast, SMARCA2 duplication rather than mutations is characteristic for Coffin–Siris syndrome. It is believed that BRM usually acts as a tumour suppressor or a tumour susceptibility gene. However, other studies provided evidence that BRM function may differ depending on the cancer type and the disease stage, where BRM may play a role in the disease progression. The existence of alternative splicing forms of SMARCA2 gene, leading to appearance of truncated functional, loss of function or gain-of-function forms of BRM protein suggest a far more complicated mode of BRM-containing SWI/SNF CRCs actions. Therefore, the summary of recent knowledge regarding BRM alteration in various types of cancer and highlighting of differences and commonalities between BRM and BRG1, another SWI2/SNF2 type ATPase, will lead to better understanding of SWI/SNF CRCs function in cancer development/progression. BRM has been recently proposed as an attractive target for various anticancer therapies including the use of small molecule inhibitors, synthetic lethality induction or proteolysis-targeting chimera (PROTAC). However, such attempts have some limitations and may lead to severe side effects given the homology of BRM ATPase domain to other ATPases, as well as due to the tissue-specific appearance of BRM- and BRG1-containing SWI/SNF CRC classes. Thus, a better insight into BRM-containing SWI/SNF CRCs function in human tissues and cancers is clearly required to provide a solid basis for establishment of new safe anticancer therapies.

Download Full-text