BET protein inhibition shows efficacy against JAK2V617F-driven neoplasms

Small molecule inhibition of the BET family of proteins, which bind acetylated lysines within histones, has been shown to have a marked therapeutic benefit in pre-clinical models of mixed lineage leukemia (MLL) fusion protein-driven leukemias. Here, we report that I-BET151, a highly specific BET family bromodomain inhibitor, leads to growth inhibition in a human erythroleukemic (HEL) cell line as well as in erythroid precursors isolated from polycythemia vera patients. One of the genes most highly downregulated by I-BET151 was LMO2, an important oncogenic regulator of hematopoietic stem cell development and erythropoiesis. We previously reported that LMO2 transcription is dependent upon Janus kinase 2 (JAK2) kinase activity in HEL cells. Here, we show that the transcriptional changes induced by a JAK2 inhibitor (TG101209) and I-BET151 in HEL cells are significantly over-lapping, suggesting a common pathway of action. We generated JAK2 inhibitor resistant HEL cells and showed that these retain sensitivity to I-BET151. These data highlight I-BET151 as a potential alternative treatment against myeloproliferative neoplasms driven by constitutively active JAK2 kinase.

HOX-mediated LMO2 expression in embryonic mesoderm is recapitulated in acute leukaemias

The Lim Domain Only 2 (LMO2) leukaemia oncogene encodes an LIM domain transcriptional cofactor required for early haematopoiesis. During embryogenesis, LMO2 is also expressed in developing tail and limb buds, an expression pattern we now show to be recapitulated in transgenic mice by an enhancer in LMO2 intron 4. Limb bud expression depended on a cluster of HOX binding sites, while posterior tail expression required the HOX sites and two E-boxes. Given the importance of both LMO2 and HOX genes in acute leukaemias, we further demonstrated that the regulatory hierarchy of HOX control of LMO2 is activated in leukaemia mouse models as well as in patient samples. Moreover, Lmo2 knock-down impaired the growth of leukaemic cells, and high LMO2 expression at diagnosis correlated with poor survival in cytogenetically normal AML patients. Taken together, these results establish a regulatory hierarchy of HOX control of LMO2 in normal development, which can be resurrected during leukaemia development. Redeployment of embryonic regulatory hierarchies in an aberrant context is likely to be relevant in human pathologies beyond the specific example of ectopic activation of LMO2.

Transcriptional regulation of the SCL locus: identification of an enhancer that targets the primitive erythroid lineage in vivo

The stem cell leukemia (SCL) gene, also known as TAL-1, encodes a basic helix-loop-helix protein that is essential for the formation of all hematopoietic lineages, including primitive erythropoiesis. Appropriate transcriptional regulation is essential for the biological functions of SCL, and we have previously identified five distinct enhancers which target different subdomains of the normal SCL expression pattern. However, it is not known whether these SCL enhancers also regulate neighboring genes within the SCL locus, and the erythroid expression of SCL remains unexplained. Here, we have quantitated transcripts from SCL and neighboring genes in multiple hematopoietic cell types. Our results show striking coexpression of SCL and its immediate downstream neighbor, MAP17, suggesting that they share regulatory elements. A systematic survey of histone H3 and H4 acetylation throughout the SCL locus in different hematopoietic cell types identified several peaks of histone acetylation between SIL and MAP17, all of which corresponded to previously characterized SCL enhancers or to the MAP17 promoter. Downstream of MAP17 (and 40 kb downstream of SCL exon 1a), an additional peak of acetylation was identified in hematopoietic cells and was found to correlate with expression of SCL but not other neighboring genes. This +40 region is conserved in human-dog-mouse-rat sequence comparisons, functions as an erythroid cell-restricted enhancer in vitro, and directs beta-galactosidase expression to primitive, but not definitive, erythroblasts in transgenic mice. The SCL +40 enhancer provides a powerful tool for studying the molecular and cellular biology of the primitive erythroid lineage.

Regulation of the stem cell leukemia (SCL) gene: a tale of two fishes

The stem cell leukemia (SCL) gene encodes a tissue-specific basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) protein with a pivotal role in hemopoiesis and vasculogenesis. Several enhancers have been identified within the murine SCL locus that direct reporter gene expression to subdomains of the normal SCL expression pattern, and long-range sequence comparisons of the human and murine SCL loci have identified additional candidate enhancers. To facilitate the characterization of regulatory elements, we have sequenced and analyzed 33 kb of the SCL genomic locus from the pufferfish Fugu rubripes, a species with a highly compact genome. Although the pattern of SCL expression is highly conserved from mammals to teleost fish, the genes flanking pufferfish SCL were unrelated to those known to flank both avian and mammalian SCL genes. These data suggest that SCL regulatory elements are confined to the region between the upstream and downstream flanking genes, a region of 65 kb in human and 8.5 kb in pufferfish. Consistent with this hypothesis, the entire 33-kb pufferfish SCL locus directed appropriate expression to hemopoietic and neural tissue in transgenic zebrafish embryos, as did a 10.4-kb fragment containing the SCL gene and extending to the 5' and 3' flanking genes. These results demonstrate the power of combining the compact genome of the pufferfish with the advantages that zebrafish provide for studies of gene regulation during development. Furthermore, the pufferfish SCL locus provides a powerful tool for the manipulation of hemopoiesis and vasculogenesis in vivo.

An N-Terminal Dimerization Domain Permits Homeodomain Proteins To Choose Compatible Partners and Initiate Sexual Development in the Mushroom Coprinus cinereus

The A mating-type locus of the mushroom Coprinus cinereus contains three or more paralogous pairs of genes encoding two families of homeodomain proteins (HD1 and HD2). A successful mating brings together different allelic forms of at least one gene, and this is sufficient to trigger initial steps in sexual development. Previous studies have suggested that development is regulated by heterodimerization between HD1 and HD2 proteins. In this report, we describe 5[prime] gene deletions and 5[prime] end exchanges showing that the N-terminal regions of the proteins are essential for choosing a compatible partner but not for regulating gene transcription. Using an in vitro glutathione S-transferase association assay, we demonstrated heterodimerization between HD1 and HD2 proteins and found that heterodimerization only occurs between compatible protein combinations. The N-terminal regions of the proteins were sufficient to mediate dimerization, and N-terminal swaps resulted in a predicted change in dimerization specificity. By analyzing the N-terminal amino acid sequences of HD1 proteins, we identified two potential coiled-coil motifs whose relative positions vary in paralogous proteins but are both required for in vivo function.