[HTML][HTML] Altered chromatin landscape and enhancer engagement underlie transcriptional dysregulation in MED12 mutant uterine leiomyomas

MB Moyo, JB Parker, D Chakravarti - Nature communications, 2020 - nature.com
MB Moyo, JB Parker, D Chakravarti
Nature communications, 2020nature.com
Uterine leiomyomas (fibroids) are a major source of gynecologic morbidity in reproductive
age women and are characterized by the excessive deposition of a disorganized
extracellular matrix, resulting in rigid benign tumors. Although down regulation of the
transcription factor AP-1 is highly prevalent in leiomyomas, the functional consequence of
AP-1 loss on gene transcription in uterine fibroids remains poorly understood. Using high-
resolution ChIP-sequencing, promoter capture Hi-C, and RNA-sequencing of matched …
Abstract
Uterine leiomyomas (fibroids) are a major source of gynecologic morbidity in reproductive age women and are characterized by the excessive deposition of a disorganized extracellular matrix, resulting in rigid benign tumors. Although down regulation of the transcription factor AP-1 is highly prevalent in leiomyomas, the functional consequence of AP-1 loss on gene transcription in uterine fibroids remains poorly understood. Using high-resolution ChIP-sequencing, promoter capture Hi-C, and RNA-sequencing of matched normal and leiomyoma tissues, here we show that modified enhancer architecture is a major driver of transcriptional dysregulation in MED12 mutant uterine leiomyomas. Furthermore, modifications in enhancer architecture are driven by the depletion of AP-1 occupancy on chromatin. Silencing of AP-1 subunits in primary myometrium cells leads to transcriptional dysregulation of extracellular matrix associated genes and partly recapitulates transcriptional and epigenetic changes observed in leiomyomas. These findings establish AP-1 driven aberrant enhancer regulation as an important mechanism of leiomyoma disease pathogenesis.
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