07-455 Sigma-AldrichAnti-CoREST Antibody

Regulators of chromatin structure and gene expression contribute to tumor formation and progression. The co-repressor CoREST1 regulates the localization and activity of associated histone modifying enzymes including lysine specific demethylase 1 (LSD1) and histone deacetylase 1 (HDAC1). Although several CoREST1 associated proteins have been reported to enhance breast cancer progression, the role of CoREST1 in breast cancer is currently unclear. Here we report that knockdown of CoREST1 in the basal-type breast cancer cell line, MDA-MB-231, led to significantly reduced incidence and diminished size of tumors compared to controls in mouse xenograft studies. Notably, CoREST1-depleted cells gave rise to tumors with a marked decrease in angiogenesis. CoREST1 knockdown led to a decrease in secreted angiogenic and inflammatory factors, and mRNA analysis suggests that CoREST1 promotes expression of genes related to angiogenesis and inflammation including VEGF-A and CCL2. CoREST1 knockdown decreased the ability of MDA-MB-231 conditioned media to promote endothelial cell tube formation and migration. Further, tumors derived from CoREST1-depleted cells had reduced macrophage infiltration and the secretome of CoREST1 knockdown cells was deficient in promoting macrophage migration and macrophage-mediated angiogenesis. Taken together, these findings reveal that the epigenetic regulator CoREST1 promotes tumorigenesis in a breast cancer model at least in part through regulation of gene expression patterns in tumor cells that have profound non-cell autonomous effects on endothelial and inflammatory cells in the tumor microenvironment.

In many cell types, differentiation requires an interplay between extrinsic signals and transcriptional changes mediated by repressive and activating histone modifications. Oligodendrocyte progenitors (OPCs) are electrically responsive cells receiving synaptic input. The differentiation of these cells into myelinating oligodendrocytes is characterized by temporal waves of gene repression followed by activation of myelin genes and progressive decline of electrical responsiveness. In this study, we used chromatin isolated from rat OPCs and immature oligodendrocytes, to characterize the genome-wide distribution of the repressive histone marks, H3K9me3 and H3K27me3, during differentiation. Although both marks were present at the OPC stage, only H3K9me3 marks (but not H3K27me3) were found to be increased during differentiation, at genes related to neuronal lineage and regulation of membrane excitability. Consistent with these findings, the levels and activity of H3K9 methyltransferases (H3K9 HMT), but not H3K27 HMT, increased more prominently upon exposure to oligodendrocyte differentiating stimuli and were detected in stage-specific repressive protein complexes containing the transcription factors SOX10 or YY1. Silencing H3K9 HMT, but not H3K27 HMT, impaired oligodendrocyte differentiation and functionally altered the response of oligodendrocytes to electrical stimulation. Together, these results identify repressive H3K9 methylation as critical for gene repression during oligodendrocyte differentiation.

The neonatal intestine is a very complex and dynamic organ that must rapidly adapt and remodel in response to a barrage of environmental stimuli during the first few postnatal weeks. Recent studies demonstrate that the zinc finger transcriptional repressor Blimp1/Prdm1 plays an essential role governing postnatal reprogramming of intestinal enterocytes during this period. Functional loss results in global changes in gene expression patterns, particularly in genes associated with metabolic function. Here we engineered a knock-in allele expressing an eGFP-tagged fusion protein under control of the endogenous regulatory elements and performed genome wide ChIP-seq analysis to identify direct Blimp1 targets and further elucidate the function of Blimp1 in intestinal development. Comparison with published human and mouse datasets revealed a highly conserved core set of genes including interferon-inducible promoters. Here we show that the interferon-inducible transcriptional activator Irf1 is constitutively expressed throughout fetal and postnatal intestinal epithelium development. ChIP-seq demonstrates closely overlapping Blimp1 and Irf1 peaks at key components of the MHC class I pathway in fetal enterocytes. The onset of MHC class I expression coincides with down-regulated Blimp1 expression during the suckling to weaning transition. Collectively, these experiments strongly suggest that in addition to regulating the enterocyte metabolic switch, Blimp1 functions as a gatekeeper in opposition to Irf1 to prevent premature activation of the MHC class I pathway in villus epithelium to maintain tolerance in the neonatal intestine.

Mammalian genomes harbor three CoREST genes. rcor1 encodes CoREST (CoREST1), and the paralogues rcor2 and rcor3 encode CoREST2 and CoREST3, respectively. Here, we describe specific properties of transcriptional complexes formed by CoREST proteins with the histone demethylase LSD1/KDM1A and histone deacetylases 1 and 2 (HDAC1/2) and the finding that all three CoRESTs are expressed in the adult rat brain. CoRESTs interact equally strongly with LSD1/KDM1A. Structural analysis shows that the overall conformation of CoREST3 is similar to that of CoREST1 complexed with LSD1/KDM1A. Nonetheless, transcriptional repressive capacity of CoREST3 is lower than that of CoREST1, which correlates with the observation that CoREST3 leads to a reduced LSD1/KDM1A catalytic efficiency. Also, CoREST2 shows a lower transcriptional repression than CoREST1, which is resistant to HDAC inhibitors. CoREST2 displays lower interaction with HDAC1/2, which is barely present in LSD1/KDM1A-CoREST2 complexes. A nonconserved leucine in the first SANT domain of CoREST2 severely weakens its association with HDAC1/2. Furthermore, CoREST2 mutants with increased HDAC1/2 interaction and those without HDAC1/2 interaction exhibit equivalent transcriptional repression capacities, indicating that CoREST2 represses in an HDAC-independent manner. In conclusion, differences among CoREST proteins are instrumental in the modulation of protein-protein interactions and catalytic activities of LSD1/KDM1A-CoREST-HDAC complexes, fine-tuning gene expression regulation.

The histone deacetylases HDAC1 and HDAC2 are crucial regulators of chromatin structure and gene expression, thereby controlling important developmental processes. In the mouse brain, HDAC1 and HDAC2 exhibit different developmental stage- and lineage-specific expression patterns. To examine the individual contribution of these deacetylases during brain development, we deleted different combinations of Hdac1 and Hdac2 alleles in neural cells. Ablation of Hdac1 or Hdac2 by Nestin-Cre had no obvious consequences on brain development and architecture owing to compensation by the paralog. By contrast, combined deletion of Hdac1 and Hdac2 resulted in impaired chromatin structure, DNA damage, apoptosis and embryonic lethality. To dissect the individual roles of HDAC1 and HDAC2, we expressed single alleles of either Hdac1 or Hdac2 in the absence of the respective paralog in neural cells. The DNA-damage phenotype observed in double knockout brains was prevented by expression of a single allele of either Hdac1 or Hdac2. Strikingly, Hdac1(-/-)Hdac2(+/-) brains showed normal development and no obvious phenotype, whereas Hdac1(+/-)Hdac2(-/-) mice displayed impaired brain development and perinatal lethality. Hdac1(+/-)Hdac2(-/-) neural precursor cells showed reduced proliferation and premature differentiation mediated by overexpression of protein kinase C, delta, which is a direct target of HDAC2. Importantly, chemical inhibition or knockdown of protein kinase C delta was sufficient to rescue the phenotype of neural progenitor cells in vitro. Our data indicate that HDAC1 and HDAC2 have a common function in maintaining proper chromatin structures and show that HDAC2 has a unique role by controlling the fate of neural progenitors during normal brain development.

Understanding how dopamine (DA) phenotypes are acquired in midbrain DA (mDA) neuron development is important for bioassays and cell replacement therapy for mDA neuron-associated disorders. Here, we demonstrate a feed-forward mechanism of mDA neuron development involving Nurr1 and Foxa2. Nurr1 acts as a transcription factor for DA phenotype gene expression. However, Nurr1-mediated DA gene expression was inactivated by forming a protein complex with CoREST, and then recruiting histone deacetylase 1 (Hdac1), an enzyme catalyzing histone deacetylation, to DA gene promoters. Co-expression of Nurr1 and Foxa2 was established in mDA neuron precursor cells by a positive cross-regulatory loop. In the presence of Foxa2, the Nurr1-CoREST interaction was diminished (by competitive formation of the Nurr1-Foxa2 activator complex), and CoREST-Hdac1 proteins were less enriched in DA gene promoters. Consequently, histone 3 acetylation (H3Ac), which is responsible for open chromatin structures, was strikingly increased at DA phenotype gene promoters. These data establish the interplay of Nurr1 and Foxa2 as the crucial determinant for DA phenotype acquisition during mDA neuron development.

Ongoing, lifelong neurogenesis maintains the neuronal population of the olfactory epithelium in the face of piecemeal neuronal turnover and restores it following wholesale loss. The molecular phenotypes corresponding to different stages along the progression from multipotent globose basal cell (GBC) progenitor to differentiated olfactory sensory neuron are poorly characterized. We used the transgenic expression of enhanced green fluorescent protein (eGFP) and cell surface markers to FACS-isolate ΔSox2-eGFP(+) GBCs, Neurog1-eGFP(+) GBCs and immature neurons, and ΔOMP-eGFP(+) mature neurons from normal adult mice. In addition, the latter two populations were also collected 3 weeks after olfactory bulb ablation, a lesion that results in persistently elevated neurogenesis. Global profiling of mRNA from the populations indicates that all stages of neurogenesis share a cohort of greater than 2,100 genes that are upregulated compared to sustentacular cells. A further cohort of greater than 1,200 genes are specifically upregulated in GBCs as compared to sustentacular cells and differentiated neurons. The increased rate of neurogenesis caused by olfactory bulbectomy had little effect on the transcriptional profile of the Neurog1-eGFP(+) population. In contrast, the abbreviated lifespan of ΔOMP-eGFP(+) neurons born in the absence of the bulb correlated with substantial differences in gene expression as compared to the mature neurons of the normal epithelium. Detailed examination of the specific genes upregulated in the different progenitor populations revealed that the chromatin modifying complex proteins LSD1 and coREST were expressed sequentially in upstream ΔSox2-eGFP(+) GBCs and Neurog1-eGFP(+) GBCs/immature neurons. The expression patterns of these proteins are dynamically regulated after activation of the epithelium by methyl bromide lesion.

SFMBT1 belongs to the malignant brain tumor domain-containing chromatin reader family that recognizes repressive histone marks and represses transcription. The biological functions and molecular basis underlying SFMBT1-mediated transcriptional repression are poorly elucidated. Here, our proteomic analysis revealed that SFMBT1 is associated with multiple transcriptional corepressor complexes, including CtBP/LSD1/HDAC complexes, polycomb repressive complexes, and malignant brain tumor family proteins, that collectively contribute to SFMBT1 repressor activity. During myogenesis, Sfmbt1 represses myogenic differentiation of cultured and primary myoblasts. Mechanistically, Sfmbt1 interacts with MyoD and mediates epigenetic silencing of MyoD target genes via recruitment of its associated corepressors and subsequent induction of epigenetic modifications and chromatin compaction. Therefore, our study identified novel mechanisms accounting for SFMBT1-mediated transcription repression and revealed an essential role of Sfmbt1 in regulating MyoD-mediated transcriptional silencing that is required for the maintenance of undifferentiated states of myogenic progenitor cells.

A close chromatin conformation precludes gene expression in eukaryotic cells. Genes activated by external cues have to overcome this repressive state by locally changing chromatin structure to a more open state. Although much is known about hormonal gene activation, how basal repression of regulated genes is targeted to the correct sites throughout the genome is not well understood. Here we report that in breast cancer cells, the unliganded progesterone receptor (PR) binds genomic sites and targets a repressive complex containing HP1γ (heterochromatin protein 1γ), LSD1 (lysine-specific demethylase 1), HDAC1/2, CoREST (corepressor for REST [RE1 {neuronal repressor element 1} silencing transcription factor]), KDM5B, and the RNA SRA (steroid receptor RNA activator) to 20% of hormone-inducible genes, keeping these genes silenced prior to hormone treatment. The complex is anchored via binding of HP1γ to H3K9me3 (histone H3 tails trimethylated on Lys 9). SRA interacts with PR, HP1γ, and LSD1, and its depletion compromises the loading of the repressive complex to target chromatin-promoting aberrant gene derepression. Upon hormonal treatment, the HP1γ-LSD1 complex is displaced from these constitutively poorly expressed genes as a result of rapid phosphorylation of histone H3 at Ser 10 mediated by MSK1, which is recruited to the target sites by the activated PR. Displacement of the repressive complex enables the loading of coactivators needed for chromatin remodeling and activation of this set of genes, including genes involved in apoptosis and cell proliferation. These results highlight the importance of the unliganded PR in hormonal regulation of breast cancer cells.

Reactivation of fetal hemoglobin (HbF) in adults ameliorates the severity of the common β-globin disorders. The transcription factor BCL11A is a critical modulator of hemoglobin switching and HbF silencing, yet the molecular mechanism through which BCL11A coordinates the developmental switch is incompletely understood. Particularly, the identities of BCL11A cooperating protein complexes and their roles in HbF expression and erythroid development remain largely unknown. Here we determine the interacting partner proteins of BCL11A in erythroid cells by a proteomic screen. BCL11A is found within multiprotein complexes consisting of erythroid transcription factors, transcriptional corepressors, and chromatin-modifying enzymes. We show that the lysine-specific demethylase 1 and repressor element-1 silencing transcription factor corepressor 1 (LSD1/CoREST) histone demethylase complex interacts with BCL11A and is required for full developmental silencing of mouse embryonic β-like globin genes and human γ-globin genes in adult erythroid cells in vivo. In addition, LSD1 is essential for normal erythroid development. Furthermore, the DNA methyltransferase 1 (DNMT1) is identified as a BCL11A-associated protein in the proteomic screen. DNMT1 is required to maintain HbF silencing in primary human adult erythroid cells. DNMT1 haploinsufficiency combined with BCL11A deficiency further enhances γ-globin expression in adult animals. Our findings provide important insights into the mechanistic roles of BCL11A in HbF silencing and clues for therapeutic targeting of BCL11A in β-hemoglobinopathies.