Note to users. If you're seeing this message, it means that your browser cannot find this page's style/presentation instructions -- or possibly that you are using a browser that does not support current Web standards. Find out more about why this message is appearing, and what you can do to make your experience of our site the best it can be.

Site Tools

  • AAAS
  • Subscribe
  • Feedback

Site Search

Search Advanced

Science 29 October 1999:
Vol. 286. no. 5441, pp. 955 - 958
DOI: 10.1126/science.286.5441.955
Prev | Table of Contents | Next

Reports

Epigenetic Inheritance of Active Chromatin After Removal of the Main Transactivator

Giacomo Cavalli, 12 Renato Paro 1*

The Drosophila Polycomb and trithorax group proteins act through chromosomal elements such as Fab-7 to maintain repressed or active gene expression, respectively. A Fab-7 element is switched from a silenced to a mitotically heritable active state by an embryonic pulse of transcription. Here, histone H4 hyperacetylation was found to be associated with Fab-7 after activation, suggesting that H4 hyperacetylation may be a heritable epigenetic tag of the activated element. Activated Fab-7 enables transcription of a gene even after withdrawal of the primary transcription factor. This feature may allow epigenetic maintenance of active states of developmental genes after decay of their early embryonic regulators.

1 Zentrum für Molekulare Biologie (ZMBH), Universität of Heidelberg, Im Neuenheimer Feld 282, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany.
2 Institut de Génétique Humaine, 141, rue de la Cardonille, 34396 Montpellier, France.
*   To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: paro{at}sun0.urz.uni-heidelberg.de

Read the Full Text


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Comparing active and repressed expression states of genes controlled by the Polycomb/Trithorax group proteins.
C. Beisel, A. Buness, I. M. Roustan-Espinosa, B. Koch, S. Schmitt, S. A. Haas, M. Hild, T. Katsuyama, and R. Paro (2007)
PNAS 104, 16615-16620
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Retinoblastoma Protein Regulation by the COP9 Signalosome.
Z. Ullah, M. S. Buckley, D. N. Arnosti, and R. W. Henry (2007)
Mol. Biol. Cell 18, 1179-1186
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Polycomb/Trithorax response elements and epigenetic memory of cell identity.
L. Ringrose and R. Paro (2007)
Development 134, 223-232
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Concise Review: Epigenetic Mechanisms Contribute to Pluripotency and Cell Lineage Determination of Embryonic Stem Cells.
Q. Gan, T. Yoshida, O. G. McDonald, and G. K. Owens (2007)
Stem Cells 25, 2-9
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Epigenetic regulators and histone modification.
A. Imhof (2006)
Brief Funct Genomic Proteomic 5, 222-227
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Drosophila Reptin and Other TIP60 Complex Components Promote Generation of Silent Chromatin.
D. Qi, H. Jin, T. Lilja, and M. Mannervik (2006)
Genetics 174, 241-251
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Efficient and Specific Targeting of Polycomb Group Proteins Requires Cooperative Interaction between Grainyhead and Pleiohomeotic.
A. Blastyak, R. K. Mishra, F. Karch, and H. Gyurkovics (2006)
Mol. Cell. Biol. 26, 1434-1444
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Menin Is a Regulator of the Stress Response in Drosophila melanogaster.
M. Papaconstantinou, Y. Wu, H. N. Pretorius, N. Singh, G. Gianfelice, R. M. Tanguay, A. R. Campos, and P.-A. Bedard (2005)
Mol. Cell. Biol. 25, 9960-9972
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
dSAP18 and dHDAC1 contribute to the functional regulation of the Drosophila Fab-7 element.
S. Canudas, S. Perez, L. Fanti, S. Pimpinelli, N. Singh, S. D. Hanes, F. Azorin, and M. L. Espinas (2005)
Nucleic Acids Res. 33, 4857-4864
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Intergenic transcription through a Polycomb group response element counteracts silencing.
S. Schmitt, M. Prestel, and R. Paro (2005)
Genes & Dev. 19, 697-708
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Onset and inheritance of abnormal epigenetic regulation in hematopoietic cells.
S. Bottardi, V. Bourgoin, N. Pierre-Charles, and E. Milot (2005)
Hum. Mol. Genet. 14, 493-502
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
General transcriptional silencing by a Polycomb response element in Drosophila.
A. K. Sengupta, A. Kuhrs, and J. Muller (2004)
Development 131, 1959-1965
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Linking Covalent Histone Modifications to Epigenetics: The Rigidity and Plasticity of the Marks.
Y. WANG, J. WYSOCKA, J.R. PERLIN, L. LEONELLI, C.D. ALLIS, and S.A. COONROD (2004)
Cold Spring Harb Symp Quant Biol 69, 161-170
   Abstract »    PDF »
Inactivation of a Histone Methyltransferase by Mutations in Human Cancers.
K.-C. Kim, L. Geng, and S. Huang (2003)
Cancer Res. 63, 7619-7623
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Inheritance of Polycomb-dependent chromosomal interactions in Drosophila.
F. Bantignies, C. Grimaud, S. Lavrov, M. Gabut, and G. Cavalli (2003)
Genes & Dev. 17, 2406-2420
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Drosophila FACT contributes to Hox gene expression through physical and functional interactions with GAGA factor.
T. Shimojima, M. Okada, T. Nakayama, H. Ueda, K. Okawa, A. Iwamatsu, H. Handa, and S. Hirose (2003)
Genes & Dev. 17, 1605-1616
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
A multistep mechanism for the activation of rearrangement in the immune system.
Y. Ji, J. Zhang, A. I. Lee, H. Cedar, and Y. Bergman (2003)
PNAS 100, 7557-7562
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Heterochromatin protein 1 (HP1) is associated with induced gene expression in Drosophila euchromatin.
L. Piacentini, L. Fanti, M. Berloco, B. Perrini, and S. Pimpinelli (2003)
J. Cell Biol. 161, 707-714
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Telomeric Associated Sequences of Drosophila Recruit Polycomb-Group Proteins in Vivo and Can Induce Pairing-Sensitive Repression.
A. Boivin, C. Gally, S. Netter, D. Anxolabehere, and S. Ronsseray (2003)
Genetics 164, 195-208
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
The Drosophila Trithorax protein is a coactivator required to prevent re-establishment of Polycomb silencing.
S. Poux, B. Horard, C. J. A. Sigrist, and V. Pirrotta (2003)
Development 129, 2483-2493
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Zeste maintains repression of Ubx transgenes: support for a new model of Polycomb repression.
M.-W. Hur, J. D. Laney, S.-H. Jeon, J. Ali, and M. D. Biggin (2003)
Development 129, 1339-1343
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
batman Interacts with Polycomb and trithorax Group Genes and Encodes a BTB/POZ Protein That Is Included in a Complex Containing GAGA Factor.
M. Faucheux, J.-Y. Roignant, S. Netter, J. Charollais, C. Antoniewski, and L. Theodore (2003)
Mol. Cell. Biol. 23, 1181-1195
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Chromatin insulation by a transcriptional activator.
N. B. Sutter, D. Scalzo, S. Fiering, M. Groudine, and D. I. K. Martin (2003)
PNAS 100, 1105-1110
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Characterization of the intergenic RNA profile at abdominal-A and Abdominal-B in the Drosophila bithorax complex.
E. Bae, V. C. Calhoun, M. Levine, E. B. Lewis, and R. A. Drewell (2002)
PNAS 99, 16847-16852
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Transcription through Intergenic Chromosomal Memory Elements of the Drosophila Bithorax Complex Correlates with an Epigenetic Switch.
G. Rank, M. Prestel, and R. Paro (2002)
Mol. Cell. Biol. 22, 8026-8034
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
A cellular memory module conveys epigenetic inheritance of hedgehog expression during Drosophila wing imaginal disc development.
C. Maurange and R. Paro (2002)
Genes & Dev. 16, 2672-2683
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
pipsqueak Encodes a Factor Essential for Sequence-Specific Targeting of a Polycomb Group Protein Complex.
D.-H. Huang, Y.-L. Chang, C.-C. Yang, I-C. Pan, and B. King (2002)
Mol. Cell. Biol. 22, 6261-6271
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Cross signaling, cell specificity, and physiology.
J. E. Dumont, S. Dremier, I. Pirson, and C. Maenhaut (2002)
Am J Physiol Cell Physiol 283, C2-C28
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Dynamics of global histone acetylation and deacetylation in vivo: rapid restoration of normal histone acetylation status upon removal of activators and repressors.
Y. Katan-Khaykovich and K. Struhl (2002)
Genes & Dev. 16, 743-752
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
The Drosophila Gene taranis Encodes a Novel Trithorax Group Member Potentially Linked to the Cell Cycle Regulatory Apparatus.
S. Calgaro, M. Boube, D. L. Cribbs, and H.-M. Bourbon (2002)
Genetics 160, 547-560
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Transcription through the iab-7 cis-regulatory domain of the bithorax complex interferes with maintenance of Polycomb-mediated silencing.
I. Hogga and F. Karch (2002)
Development 129, 4915-4922
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
DNA methylation patterns and epigenetic memory.
A. Bird (2002)
Genes & Dev. 16, 6-21
   Full Text »    PDF »
The Trithorax-mimic Allele of Enhancer of zeste Renders Active Domains of Target Genes Accessible to Polycomb-Group-Dependent Silencing in Drosophila melanogaster.
I. Bajusz, L. Sipos, Z. Gyorgypal, E. A. Carrington, R. S. Jones, J. Gausz, and H. Gyurkovics (2001)
Genetics 159, 1135-1150
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
DNA Methylation Is Linked to Deacetylation of Histone H3, but Not H4, on the Imprinted Genes Snrpn and U2af1-rs1.
R. I. Gregory, T. E. Randall, C. A. Johnson, S. Khosla, I. Hatada, L. P. O'Neill, B. M. Turner, and R. Feil (2001)
Mol. Cell. Biol. 21, 5426-5436
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Translating the Histone Code.
T. Jenuwein and C. D. Allis (2001)
Science 293, 1074-1080
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Essential role of Drosophila Hdac1 in homeotic gene silencing.
Y.-L. Chang, Y.-H. Peng, I-C. Pan, D.-S. Sun, B. King, and D.-H. Huang (2001)
PNAS
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
The domino gene of Drosophila encodes novel members of the SWI2/SNF2 family of DNA-dependent ATPases, which contribute to the silencing of homeotic genes.
M. Ruhf, A Braun, O Papoulas, J. Tamkun, N Randsholt, and M Meister (2001)
Development 128, 1429-1441
   Abstract »    PDF »
The Drosophila Polycomb Group proteins ESC and E(Z) are present in a complex containing the histone-binding protein p55 and the histone deacetylase RPD3.
F Tie, T Furuyama, J Prasad-Sinha, E Jane, and P. Harte (2001)
Development 128, 275-286
   Abstract »    PDF »
Chromatin fine structure profiles for a developmentally regulated gene: reorganization of the lysozyme locus before trans-activator binding and gene expression.
J. Kontaraki, H.-H. Chen, A. Riggs, and C. Bonifer (2000)
Genes & Dev. 14, 2106-2122
   Abstract »    Full Text »
Essential role of Drosophila Hdac1 in homeotic gene silencing.
Y.-L. Chang, Y.-H. Peng, I-C. Pan, D.-S. Sun, B. King, and D.-H. Huang (2001)
PNAS 98, 9730-9735
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »


To Advertise     Find Products

Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)