Regional Specific Differentiation of Integumentary Organs: Regulation of Gene Clusters within the Avian Epidermal Differentiation Complex and Impacts of SATB2 Overexpression

Genes

Gee-Way Lin¹  Cheng-Ming Chuong¹  Randall B. Widelitz¹  Ping Wu¹  Ya-Chen Liang¹  Yung-Chih Lai¹ 

[1] Department of Pathology, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA;

关键词: skin appendage;    feather;    scale;    beak;    evolution;    Evo-Devo;   

DOI  :  10.3390/genes12081291

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

The epidermal differentiation complex (EDC) encodes a group of unique proteins expressed in late epidermal differentiation. The EDC gave integuments new physicochemical properties and is critical in evolution. Recently, we showed β-keratins, members of the EDC, undergo gene cluster switching with overexpression of SATB2 (Special AT-rich binding protein-2), considered a chromatin regulator. We wondered whether this unique regulatory mechanism is specific to β-keratins or may be derived from and common to EDC members. Here we explore (1) the systematic expression patterns of non-β-keratin EDC genes and their preferential expression in different skin appendages during development, (2) whether the expression of non-β-keratin EDC sub-clusters are also regulated in clusters by SATB2. We analyzed bulk RNA-seq and ChIP-seq data and also evaluated the disrupted expression patterns caused by overexpressing SATB2. The results show that the expression of whole EDDA and EDQM sub-clusters are possibly mediated by enhancers in E14-feathers. Overexpressing SATB2 down-regulates the enriched EDCRP sub-cluster in feathers and the EDCH sub-cluster in beaks. These results reveal the potential of complex epigenetic regulation activities within the avian EDC, implying transcriptional regulation of EDC members acting at the gene and/or gene cluster level in a temporal and skin regional-specific fashion, which may contribute to the evolution of diverse avian integuments.

【 授权许可】

Unknown