During development, multipotent stem cells establish tissue-specific programmes of gene expression that underlie a process of differentiation into specialized cell types. It was shown in the study that changes in the nuclear architecture during terminal keratinocyte differentiation show correlation with the dynamics of the transcriptional and metabolic activity. In particular, terminal differentiation is accompanied by the decrease of nuclear volume, elongation of its shape, reduction of the number and fusion of nucleoli, increase in the number of centromeric clusters and a dramatic decrease of the transcriptional activity. Global changes in the nuclear architecture of epidermal keratinocytes are associated with marked remodelling of the higher-order chromatin structure of the epidermal differentiating complex (EDC). EDC is positioned peripherally in the epidermal nuclei at E11.5 when its genes show low expression levels and relocates towards the nuclear interior at E16.5 when EDC genes are markedly upregulated. P63 transcription factor serving as a master regulator of epidermal development is involved in the control of EDC relocation in epidermal progenitor cells. The epidermis of E16.5 p63KO exhibits significantly more peripheral positioning of the EDC loci, compared to wild-type. The genome organizer Satb1 serving as a direct p63 target controls higher order chromatin folding of the central part of EDC and Satb1 knockout mice show alterations of epidermal development and expression of the EDC encoded genes. Thus, this study shows that the programme of epidermal development and terminal differentiation is regulated by p63 and other factors and include marked remodelling of three-dimensional nuclear organization and positioning of tissue specific gene loci. In addition to the direct involvement of p63 in controlling the expression of tissue-specific genes, p63 via regulation of the chromatin remodelling factors such as Satb1 promotes establishing specific conformation of the EDC locus required for efficient expression of terminal differentiation-associated genes.

During development, multipotent stem cells establish tissue-specific programmes of gene expression that underlie a process of differentiation into specialized cell types. It was shown in the study that changes in the nuclear architecture during terminal keratinocyte differentiation show correlation with the dynamics of the transcriptional and metabolic activity. In particular, terminal differentiation is accompanied by the decrease of nuclear volume, elongation of its shape, reduction of the number and fusion of nucleoli, increase in the number of centromeric clusters and a dramatic decrease of the transcriptional activity. Global changes in the nuclear architecture of epidermal keratinocytes are associated with marked remodelling of the higher-order chromatin structure of the epidermal differentiating complex (EDC). EDC is positioned peripherally in the epidermal nuclei at E11.5 when its genes show low expression levels and relocates towards the nuclear interior at E16.5 when EDC genes are markedly upregulated. P63 transcription factor serving as a master regulator of epidermal development is involved in the control of EDC relocation in epidermal progenitor cells. The epidermis of E16.5 p63KO exhibits significantly more peripheral positioning of the EDC loci, compared to wild-type. The genome organizer Satb1 serving as a direct p63 target controls higher order chromatin folding of the central part of EDC and Satb1 knockout mice show alterations of epidermal development and expression of the EDC encoded genes. Thus, this study shows that the programme of epidermal development and terminal differentiation is regulated by p63 and other factors and include marked remodelling of three-dimensional nuclear organization and positioning of tissue specific gene loci. In addition to the direct involvement of p63 in controlling the expression of tissue-specific genes, p63 via regulation of the chromatin remodelling factors such as Satb1 promotes establishing specific conformation of the EDC locus required for efficient expression of terminal differentiation-associated genes.

No / The nucleus is a complex and highly compartmentalized organelle, which undergoes major organization changes during cell differentiation, allowing cells to become specialized and fulfill their functions. During terminal differentiation of the epidermal keratinocytes, the nucleus undergoes a programmed transformation from active status, associated with execution of the genetic programs of cornification and epidermal barrier formation, to a fully inactive condition and becomes a part of the keratinized cells of the cornified layer. Tremendous progress achieved within the past two decades in understanding the biology of the nucleus and epigenetic mechanisms controlling gene expression allowed defining several levels in the regulation of cell differentiation–associated gene expression programs, including an accessibility of the gene regulatory regions to DNA–protein interactions, covalent DNA and histone modifications, and ATP-dependent chromatin remodeling, as well as higher-order chromatin remodeling and nuclear compartmentalization of the genes and transcription machinery. Here, we integrate our current knowledge of the mechanisms controlling gene expression during terminal keratinocyte differentiation with distinct levels of chromatin organization and remodeling. We also propose directions to further explore the role of epigenetic mechanisms and their interactions with other regulatory systems in the control of keratinocyte differentiation in normal and diseased skin.

Les HPV sont les agents d'infections latentes, d'hyperplasies bénignes ou encore de cancer. Afin de mieux comprendre leur pathogenèse, nous avons cartographié les réseaux d'interactions de protéines de régulation virale E2 pour 12 génotypes HPV. Par double hybride, nous avons procédé à l'identification des interacteurs des protéines E2 suivi par une validation en cellule de mammifère par une méthode basée sur la reconstitution d'une luciferase. Le regroupement des profiles d'interaction montre une corrélation avec la phylogénie, établissant ainsi la contribution de E2 dans la pathogénie associée aux HPV. L'étude des réseaux d'interaction a révélé le ciblage préférentiel de protéines cellulaires hautement connectées, impliquées dans 5 catégories fonctionnelles récapitulant les principales fonctions de E2 mais aussi ouvrant de nouvelles perspectives quant au rôle de cette protéine virale dans les mécanismes d'infection. Dans un deuxième temps, ce travail s'est focalisé sur l'étude d'une interaction impliquant spécifiquement la protéine E2 d'HPV16, le virus le plus représenté dans les cancers cervicaux, et une protéine cellulaire, CCHCR1. En identifiant la surface d'interaction de CCHCR1 sur E2, il s'est avéré qu'elle induisait une compétition avec BRD4, un interacteur majeur de E2, se traduisant par une diminution des capacités transcriptionelle de E2. De même, nous avons montré que CCHCR1 induisait la délocalisation de E2 du noyau vers le cytoplasme. Enfin, nos résultats indiquent qu'en présence de CCHCR1, HPV16 E2 est moins apte à induire la différentiation précoce des kératinocytes, ce qui pourrait potentiellement avoir un effet important sur le cycle viral.