Biology subjects

Poirier, M. G.

Publications and source records attributed to Poirier, M. G..

23 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

bioRxiv2022

HIV-1 preintegration complex preferentially integrates the viral DNA into nucleosomes containing trimethylated histone 3-lysine 36 modification

HIV-1 DNA integration into the host chromosomes is carried out by the preintegration complex (PIC). The PIC contains the viral DNA, virally encoded integrase enzyme and other critical viral/host factors. The PIC-associated viral DNA is preferentially integrated into gene bodies of actively transcribing genes. Here, we identify a biochemical mechanism underlying the preference of PIC-mediated viral DNA integration (PIC-VDI). Specifically, we observed that the PIC-VDI into human chromatin is preferred over the genomic DNA. Surprisingly, nucleosome core particles without any histone modifications were not preferred for PIC-VDI when compared to the analogous naked DNA. However, PIC-VDI was markedly enhanced with nucleosomes containing the trimethylated histone 3 lysine 36 (H3K36me3), an epigenetic mark linked to HIV-1 DNA integration preference. Interestingly, we observed that nucleosomes with flanking linker DNA promoted PIC-VDI in the presence of LEDGF/p75. We also discovered that nucleosomes with linker DNA and H3K36me3 served as the optimal substrate for PIC-VDI. Mapping of the integration sites within these substrates identified preference of specific regions of the nucleosome core DNA for integration. Finally, we provide biochemical and genetic evidence that histone H1 protein, that condenses the chromatin, negatively regulates HIV-1 DNA integration, consistent with the integration preference for open chromatin structure. Collectively, these results identify the role of specific chromatin marks that drive HIV-1 integration preference and define the optimal substrate requirement for efficient DNA integration by the PIC.

microbiology↗

bioRxiv2020

Nucleosome composition regulates the histone H3 tail conformational ensemble and accessibility

Sub-nucleosomal complexes including hexasomes and tetrasomes have been identified as intermediates in nucleosome assembly and disassembly. Their formation is promoted by certain histone chaperones and ATP-dependent remodelers, as well as through transcription by RNA polymerase II. In addition, hexasomes appear to be maintained in transcribed genes and could be an important regulatory factor. While nucleosome composition affects the structure and accessibility of the nucleosomal DNA, its influence on the histone tails is largely unknown. Previously, we found that the H3 tail accessibly is occluded in the context of the nucleosome due to interactions with DNA (Morrison et al, 2018). Here, we investigate the conformational dynamics of the H3 tail in the hexasome and tetrasome. Using a combination of NMR spectroscopy, MD simulations, and trypsin proteolysis, we find that the conformational ensemble of the H3 tail is regulated by nucleosome composition. Similar to what we previously found for the nucleosome, the H3 tails bind robustly to DNA within the hexasome and tetrasome, but upon loss of the H2A/H2B dimer, we determined that the adjacent H3 tail has an altered conformational ensemble, increase in dynamics, and increase in accessibility. Similar to observations of DNA dynamics, this is seen to be asymmetric in the hexasome. Our results indicate that nucleosome composition has the potential to regulate chromatin signaling at the histone tails and ultimately help shape the chromatin landscape.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.View Full Text

biophysics↗

bioRxiv2019

Convergent Hybrid Phase Ligation Strategy for Efficient Total Synthesis of Large Proteins Demonstrated for 212-residue Linker Histone H1.2

Simple and efficient total chemical synthesis of large proteins remains a significant challenge. Here, we report development of a convergent hybrid phase native chemical ligation (CHP-NCL) strategy that should be generally applicable for facile preparation of large proteins. Key to the strategy is the use of sequential ligation on the solid phase for the directed assembly of ~100-residue segments from short, synthetically accessible peptide components. These segments can then be assembled via convergent solution phase ligation, exploiting o-aminoaniline as a chemically flexible cryptic thioester with multiple activation modalitiies on resin and in situ. We demonstrate the feasibility of our approach through the total synthesis of 212-residue linker histone H1.2 in unmodified, phosphorylated, and citrullinated forms, each from eight component peptide segments. We further demonstrate that fully synthetic H1.2 replicates the binding interactions of linker histones to intact mononucleosomes, as a proxy for the essential function of linker histones in the formation and regulation of higher order chromatin structure.

biochemistry↗

bioRxiv2018

Dissociation rate compensation mechanism for budding yeast pioneer transcription factors

Nucleosomes restrict the occupancy of most transcription factors (TF) by reducing binding and accelerating dissociation, while a small group of TFs have high affinities to nucleosome-embedded sites and facilitate nucleosome displacement. To mechanistically understand this process, we investigated two S. cerevisiae TFs, Reb1 and Cbf1. We show these factors bind their sites within nucleosomes with similar affinities to naked DNA, trapping a partially unwrapped nucleosome without histone eviction. Both the binding and dissociation rates of Reb1 and Cbf1 are significantly slower at the nucleosomal sites relative to DNA, demonstrating that the high affinities are achieved by increasing the dwell time on nucleosomes to compensate for reduced binding. Reb1 also shows slow migration rate in the yeast nuclei. These properties are similar to human pioneer factors (PFs), suggesting the mechanism of nucleosome targeting is conserved from yeast to human.

molecular biology↗

bioRxiv2018

Single-molecule imaging reveals the interplay between transcription factors, nucleosomes, and transcriptional bursting

Transcription factors show rapid and reversible binding to chromatin in living cells, and transcription occurs in sporadic bursts, but how these phenomena are related is unknown. Using a combination of in vitro and in vivo single-molecule imaging approaches, we directly correlated binding of the transcription factor Gal4 with the transcriptional bursting kinetics of the Gal4 target genes GAL3 and GAL10 in living yeast cells. We find that Gal4 dwell times sets the transcriptional burst size. Gal4 dwell time depends on the affinity of the binding site and is reduced by orders of magnitude by nucleosomes. Using a novel imaging platform, we simultaneously tracked transcription factor binding and transcription at one locus, revealing the timing and correlation between Gal4 binding and transcription. Collectively, our data support a model where multiple polymerases initiate during a burst as long as the transcription factor is bound to DNA, and a burst terminates upon transcription factor dissociation.

molecular biology↗