Search bioRxivSearch

Biology subjects

Schmidl, C.

Publications and source records attributed to Schmidl, C..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

MTHFD1 is a genetic interactor of BRD4 and links folate metabolism to transcriptional regulation

The histone acetyl-reader BRD4 is an important regulator of chromatin structure and transcription, yet factors modulating its activity have remained elusive. Here we describe two complementary screens for genetic and physical interactors of BRD4, which converge on the folate pathway enzyme MTHFD1. We show that a fraction of MTHFD1 resides in the nucleus, where it is recruited to distinct genomic loci by direct interaction with BRD4. Inhibition of either BRD4 or MTHFD1 results in similar changes in nuclear metabolite composition and gene expression, and pharmacologic inhibitors of the two pathways synergize to impair cancer cell viability in vitro and in vivo. Our finding that MTHFD1 and other metabolic enzymes are chromatin-associated suggests a direct role for nuclear metabolism in the control of gene expression.

cancer biology

High-Throughput ChIPmentation: freely scalable, single day ChIPseq data generation from very low cell-numbers

Chromatin immunoprecipitation coupled to sequencing (ChIP-seq) is widely used to map histone modifications and transcription factor binding on a genome-wide level. Here, we present high-throughput ChIPmentation (HT-ChIPmentation) that eliminates the need for DNA purification prior to library amplification and reduces reverse-crosslinking time from hours to minutes. The resulting workflow is easily established, extremely rapid, and compatible with requirements for very low numbers of FACS sorted cells, high-throughput applications and single day data generation.

molecular biology

Pooled CRISPR screening with single-cell transcriptome read-out

CRISPR-based genetic screens have revolutionized the search for new gene functions and biological mechanisms. However, widely used pooled screens are limited to simple read-outs of cell proliferation or the production of a selectable marker protein. Arrayed screens allow for more complex molecular read-outs such as transcriptome profiling, but they provide much lower throughput. Here we demonstrate CRISPR genome editing together with single-cell RNA sequencing as a new screening paradigm that combines key advantages of pooled and arrayed screens. This approach allowed us to link guide-RNA expression to the associated transcriptome responses in thousands of single cells using a straightforward and broadly applicable screening workflow.

genomics