title: Gene bivalency at Polycomb domains regulates cranial neural crest positional identity.
abstract: The cranial neural crest cells are multipotent cells that provide head skeletogenic mesenchyme and are crucial for craniofacial patterning. We analyzed the chromatin landscapes of mouse cranial neural crest subpopulations in vivo. Early postmigratory subpopulations contributing to distinct mouse craniofacial structures displayed similar chromatin accessibility patterns yet differed transcriptionally. Accessible promoters and enhancers of differentially silenced genes carried H3K27me3/H3K4me2 bivalent chromatin marks embedded in largeenhancer of zeste homolog 2-dependent Polycomb domains, indicating transcriptional poising. These postmigratory bivalent chromatin regions were already present in premigratory progenitors. At Polycomb domains, H3K27me3 antagonized H3K4me2 deposition, which was restricted to accessible sites. Thus, bivalent Polycomb domains provide a chromatin template for the regulation of cranial neural crest cell positional identity in vivo, contributing insights into the epigenetic regulation of face morphogenesis.
authors.affiliation: Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4051 Basel, Switzerland.|INSERM UMR 1121, Université de Strasbourg, Faculté de Chirurgie Dentaire, 8 rue Sainte Elisabeth, 67 000 Strasbourg, France.
authors.forename: Maryline
authors.identifier: 0000-0001-9213-8338
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Minoux
authors.affiliation: Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4051 Basel, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Sjoerd
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Holwerda
authors.affiliation: Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4051 Basel, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.identifier: 0000-0003-3717-8374
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Vitobello
authors.affiliation: Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4051 Basel, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Taro
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-3377-493X
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kitazawa
authors.affiliation: Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4051 Basel, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Hubertus
authors.identifier: 0000-0003-4395-7630
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kohler
authors.affiliation: Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4051 Basel, Switzerland. michael.stadler@fmi.ch filippo.rijli@fmi.ch.|Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4051 Basel, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Michael B
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-2269-4934
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Stadler
authors.affiliation: Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4051 Basel, Switzerland. michael.stadler@fmi.ch filippo.rijli@fmi.ch.|University of Basel, 4003 Basel, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Filippo M
authors.identifier: 0000-0003-0515-0182
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: Rijli
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002465:Cell Movement; D000066670:Cell Plasticity / Q000235:genetics; D002843:Chromatin / Q000378:metabolism; D004742:Enhancer Elements, Genetic; D000071221:Enhancer of Zeste Homolog 2 Protein / Q000235:genetics*; D044127:Epigenesis, Genetic; D005145:Face / Q000196:embryology*; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D018398:Homeodomain Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D056484:Jumonji Domain-Containing Histone Demethylases / Q000378:metabolism; D051379:Mice; D009432:Neural Crest / Q000166:cytology / Q000196:embryology*; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic; D000072417:Protein Domains; D012886:Skull / Q000196:embryology*
chemical_list: D002843:Chromatin; D018398:Homeodomain Proteins; C489833:Hoxa2 protein, mouse; D056484:Jumonji Domain-Containing Histone Demethylases; C523761:Kdm6b protein, mouse; D000071221:Enhancer of Zeste Homolog 2 Protein; C498410:Ezh2 protein, mouse