A histone methylation network regulates transgenerational epigenetic memory in C. elegans

Greer, Eric L., Beese-Sims, Sara E., Brookes, Emily, Spadafora, Ruggero, Zhu, Yun, Rothbart, Scott B., Aristizábal-Corrales, David, Chen, Shuzhen, Badeaux, Aimee I., Jin, Qiuye, Wang, Wei, Strahl, Brian D., Colaiácovo, Monica P. and Shi, Yang (2014) A histone methylation network regulates transgenerational epigenetic memory in C. elegans. Cell Reports, 7 (1), 113-126. (doi:10.1016/j.celrep.2014.02.044).

Abstract

How epigenetic information is transmitted from generation to generation remains largely unknown. Deletion of the C. elegans histone H3 lysine 4 dimethyl (H3K4me2) demethylase spr-5 leads to inherited accumulation of the euchromatic H3K4me2 mark and progressive decline in fertility. Here, we identified multiple chromatin-modifying factors, including H3K4me1/me2 and H3K9me3 methyltransferases, an H3K9me3 demethylase, and an H3K9me reader, which either suppress or accelerate the progressive transgenerational phenotypes of spr-5 mutant worms. Our findings uncover a network of chromatin regulators that control the transgenerational flow of epigenetic information and suggest that the balance between euchromatic H3K4 and heterochromatic H3K9 methylation regulates transgenerational effects on fertility.

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Contributors

Author: Emily Brookes

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