Anna Mattout- Facultative Heterochromatin silencing, A new mechanism ay a new level of regulation

You are cordially invited to a special seminar of the Department of Human molecular Genetics and Biochemistry Sackler Faculty of Medicine

By: Anna Mattout, Ph.D.

CBI Institute, Toulouse, France

Title: Facultative Heterochromatin silencing, A new mechanism ay a new level regulation

Abstract:

Polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2) is the key chromatin modifier responsible for methylation of lysine 27 in Histone H3. H3K27me3 and PRC2 have major roles in cell fate decisions and the maintenance of cellular identity, and their misregulation contributes to many types of cancer and genetic diseases, even if the mechanistic link is unclear.

We have recently discovered that the RNA binding complex LSM2-8 complex mediates a mechanism of RNA degradation that almost exclusively targets H3K27me3-marked genes in C. elegans. This is what I will tell you about. This reveals that in higher eukaryotes, Polycomb-target genes can be silenced by specific degradation of these produced RNAs, and not only by transcriptional repression, as it was believed.

Therefore, it is crucial to understand now whether this specific LSM8-mediated silencing mechanism or similar mechanisms are conserved in mammals and to understand in C. elegans the details of this mechanism to shed light on how a post-transcriptional mechanism can acquire specificity for a certain epigenetics state; how this RNA binding complex can feedback on the chromatin state and in general on what extent the transcriptional and post-trancriptional levels of regulation lead to heterochromatin silencing.

The Seminar will take place on Monday, December 7th, 2020 at 10:00 AM

Zoom link:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84357260399

Meeting ID: 843 5726 0399