Remodeling of 3D Gene Architecture in Myocardium from Embryonic Development to Early Aging
Here, we used Hi-C and combined it with RNA-seq to investigate the potential association between chromatin structure and transcriptional regulatory functions during development and aging. In contrast to previous studies, in which development and aging were studied separately, we chose a broader timeline (70 days of embryonic life, post-natal 6 months, and post-natal 9 year) and explored the three-dimensional conformational changes during this period from a global perspective at the A\B compartment, TAD, and loop/PEI levels, respectively. Meanwhile, whereas previous studies of the 3D genome of the heart during development and aging have often used cells cultured in vitro with humans or samples from mice, the present study used samples from mini-pigs (Tibetan pigs), which are more similar to humans in terms of cardiac deconvolutional structure and in a natural state of embryonic development, adulthood, and aging, to better elucidate the complex 3D dynamics of chromatin during the period of development and aging. Overall, this study demonstrates the impact of dynamic interactions between global and local chromatin structures on gene expression patterns during cardiac developmental senescence, providing novel insights into the study of development and senescence.