Interactions among Polycomb Domains Are Guided by Chromosome Architecture

Polycomb group (PcG) proteins bind and regulate hundreds of genes. Previous evidence has suggested that long-range chromatin interactions may contribute to the regulation of PcG target genes. Here, we adapted the Chromosome Conformation Capture on Chip (4C) assay to systematically map chromosomal in...

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Published in:PLoS genetics Vol. 7; no. 3; p. e1001343
Main Authors: Tolhuis, Bas, Blom, Marleen, Kerkhoven, Ron M., Pagie, Ludo, Teunissen, Hans, Nieuwland, Marja, Simonis, Marieke, de Laat, Wouter, van Lohuizen, Maarten, van Steensel, Bas
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: United States Public Library of Science 01.03.2011
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Subjects:
Animals
Architecture
Brain - metabolism
Cellular proteins
Chromatin
Chromatin - metabolism
Chromosomes
Chromosomes - chemistry
Chromosomes - metabolism
Chromosomes, Insect - chemistry
Chromosomes, Insect - genetics
Computational Biology
DNA-Binding Proteins - genetics
DNA-Binding Proteins - metabolism
Drosophila
Drosophila melanogaster - genetics
Drosophila melanogaster - metabolism
Drosophila Proteins - genetics
Drosophila Proteins - metabolism
Gene Expression Profiling
Gene Expression Regulation
Genes, Homeobox - genetics
Genetic aspects
Genetics
Genetics and Genomics/Chromosome Biology
Genetics and Genomics/Epigenetics
Genetics and Genomics/Nuclear Structure and Function
Genomes
Genomics
Histones - metabolism
Insects
Larva
Physiological aspects
Polycomb-Group Proteins
Protein Binding
Proteins
Repressor Proteins - chemistry
Repressor Proteins - metabolism
Netherlands
ISSN:1553-7404, 1553-7390, 1553-7404
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:Polycomb group (PcG) proteins bind and regulate hundreds of genes. Previous evidence has suggested that long-range chromatin interactions may contribute to the regulation of PcG target genes. Here, we adapted the Chromosome Conformation Capture on Chip (4C) assay to systematically map chromosomal interactions in Drosophila melanogaster larval brain tissue. Our results demonstrate that PcG target genes interact extensively with each other in nuclear space. These interactions are highly specific for PcG target genes, because non-target genes with either low or high expression show distinct interactions. Notably, interactions are mostly limited to genes on the same chromosome arm, and we demonstrate that a topological rather than a sequence-based mechanism is responsible for this constraint. Our results demonstrate that many interactions among PcG target genes exist and that these interactions are guided by overall chromosome architecture.
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Conceived and designed the experiments: BT MvL BvS. Performed the experiments: BT MB HT. Analyzed the data: BT. Contributed reagents/materials/analysis tools: RMK LP HT MN MS WdL. Wrote the paper: BT MvL BvS.
ISSN:1553-7404
1553-7390
1553-7404
DOI:10.1371/journal.pgen.1001343