DNA and Histone Modifications Identify a Putative Controlling Element (CE) on the X Chromosome of Sciara coprophila
The term chromosomal imprinting was introduced to denote the parent-of-origin-dependent behavior of chromosomes in the fungus gnat originally named <i>Sciara coprophila</i> (current taxonomic name is <i>Bradysia coprophila</i>). Such behavior is observed in <i>Sciara coprophila</i> embryos, where paternal X chromosomes (X<sub>p</sub>) are specifically eliminated during the 7th-8th cleavage divisions. Elimination is regulated by a controlling element (CE) that has been mapped to heterochromomere II (H2) within the sub-telomeric short arm of polytene X chromosomes. Here, using a combination of a new <i>Sciara</i> genome assembly, along with ChIP-Seq and MeDIP analyses, we show that a 1.2 Mb region within the CE locus has a repressive epigenetic signature that is characterised by enrichments of H3K9me3, H4K20me3 and 5'-methyl cytosine (5meC). These data provide evidence for a model where the H3K9me3/HP1/H4K20me3 pathway operates to assemble a heterochromatin-<i>like</i> complex at the CE that renders it silent on X<sub>p</sub> chromosomes that are not eliminated. In this regard, our findings support the idea that the H3K9me3/HP1/H4K20me3 pathway represents the most evolutionarily conserved mechanism linked to chromosomal imprinting in animals.
Authors
- Nikita Torgunakov (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2493-0731)
- Varvara Lukyanchikova (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1828-4721)
- Nariman Battulin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0611-0203)
- Veniamin Fishman (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5573-3100)
- Prim B. Singh (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9571-0974)
- Stanislav E. Romanov (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5989-5756)
- Polina Antoshina (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3965-1786)
- Stepan N. Belyakin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2315-4382)
- Yuri V. Vyatkin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9056-8796)
- Artem R. Nurislamov (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0553-1316)
- Olga Posukh
- Daniil A. Maksimov
- Darya A. Kalashnikova (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0209-4616)
- Petr P. Laktionov (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2174-6496)
- Polina A. Skrypnik
- Victor V. Shloma (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2532-1815)
- Arina A. Smelova
- Daulet Valishayev (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9019-0191)
Institutions
- Novosibirsk State University (RU)
- Sirius University of Science and Technology (RU)
- Institute of Cytology and Genetics (RU)
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (RU)
- Nazarbayev University (KZ)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Cells
- Published
- 2025-08-12
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3390/cells14161243
- Primary Topic
- Chromosomal and Genetic Variations
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation
- Nazarbayev University