The RNA helicase Rm62 cooperates with SU(VAR)3-9 to re-silence active transcription in Drosophila melanogaster.

Gene expression is highly dynamic and many genes show a wide range in expression over several orders of magnitude. This regulation is often mediated by sequence specific transcription factors. In addition, the tight packaging of DNA into chromatin can provide an additional layer of control resulting in a dynamic range of gene expression covering several orders of magnitude. During transcriptional activation, chromatin barriers have to be eliminated to allow an efficient progression of the RNA polymerase. This repressive chromatin structure has to be re-established quickly after it has been activated in order to tightly regulate gene activity. We show that the DExD/H box containing RNA helicase Rm62 is targeted to a site of rapid induction of transcription where it is responsible for an increased degree of methylation at H3K9 at the heat shock locus after removal of the heat shock stimulus. The RNA helicase interacts with the well-characterized histone methyltransferase SU(VAR)3-9 via its N-terminus, which provides a potential mechanism for the targeting of H3K9 methylation to highly regulated genes. The recruitment of SU(VAR)3-9 through interaction with a RNA helicase to a site of active transcription might be a general mechanism that allows an efficient silencing of highly regulated genes thereby enabling a cell to fine tune its gene activity over a wide range.

Phosphorylation of SU(VAR)3-9 by the chromosomal kinase JIL-1.

The histone methyltransferase SU(VAR)3-9 plays an important role in the formation of heterochromatin within the eukaryotic nucleus. Several studies have shown that the formation of condensed chromatin is highly regulated during development, suggesting that SU(VAR)3-9's activity is regulated as well. However, no mechanism by which this may be achieved has been reported so far. As we and others had shown previously that the N-terminus of SU(VAR)3-9 plays an important role for its activity, we purified interaction partners from Drosophila embryo nuclear extract using as bait a GST fusion protein containing the SU(VAR)3-9 N-terminus. Among several other proteins known to bind Su(VAR)3-9 we isolated the chromosomal kinase JIL-1 as a strong interactor. We show that SU(VAR)3-9 is a substrate for JIL-1 in vitro as well as in vivo and map the site of phosphorylation. These findings may provide a molecular explanation for the observed genetic interaction between SU(VAR)3-9 and JIL-1.

Two highly related p66 proteins comprise a new family of potent transcriptional repressors interacting with MBD2 and MBD3.

Methyl-CpG-binding domain proteins (MBD) mediate functional responses of methylated DNA. MBD2 and MBD3 are components of the MeCP1 protein complex, which contains the Mi-2/NuRD complex and includes 66- and 68-kDa polypeptides. Here we identified two highly related 66-kDa proteins in a yeast two-hybrid screen with MBD2b. Based on the high degree of sequence conservation to the previously identified Xenopus p66 subunit of the Mi-2/NuRD complex, we termed these proteins hp66alpha and hp66beta. hp66alpha is the human orthologue of Xenopus p66, whereas hp66beta, previously identified as a component of the human MeCP1 complex, is a second member of a p66 gene family. Coprecipitation of hp66alpha and MBD2 demonstrates their in vivo association. Furthermore, confocal microscopy shows a nuclear colocalization of hp66alpha with hp66beta and MBD2 in a speckled pattern. hp66alpha is a potent transcriptional repressor reducing gene activity about 100-fold and is ubiquitously coexpressed with hp66beta in cell lines and in fetal and adult tissues. We demonstrate direct binding of both p66 family members to MBD2 as well as MBD3. Interestingly, hp66alpha, which binds with a higher affinity than hp66beta, interacts via two interaction domains in contrast to a single interaction domain present in hp66beta. These results demonstrate that two highly related mammalian p66 proteins display overlapping functions and are involved in methylation dependent transcriptional repression.