Orientador: Fabíola Traina / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Ciências Médicas / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-24T22:39:22Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Scopim-Ribeiro_Renata_M.pdf: 3643524 bytes, checksum: fec865c6ccea452efda050e40c6f1aa1 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014 / Resumo: As neoplasias mieloides compreendem um grupo heterogêneo de doenças hematológicas que se originam de um precursor mieloide comum, em diferentes fases de diferenciação. As alterações celulares que levam ao desenvolvimento de neoplasias podem ocorrer através de mecanismos epigenéticos ou de alterações genéticas. DNMT3A codifica metiltransferases que adicionam grupamentos metil a resíduos de citosina do DNA e TET2 promove a hidroxilação da citosina metilada, o que os caracteriza como elementos importantes no controle epigenético. DNMT3A e TET2 encontram-se frequentemente mutados em neoplasias mieloides, mas o impacto prognóstico destas mutações ainda é controverso. A consequência funcional da mutação de DNMT3A em neoplasias mieloides ainda não foi definida, mas o silenciamento da proteína em células progenitoras murinas favorece a autorrenovação e compromete a diferenciação celular. A mutação de TET2 tem como consequência a perda de função do gene e participa da transformação neoplásica das células mieloides, favorecendo a proliferação da série mielomonocítica. Entretanto, a expressão de TET2 e DNMT3A nestas doenças ainda é pouco elucidada. Assim, os objetivos deste estudo foram (1) investigar a expressão de TET2 e DNMT3A em células hematopoéticas de indivíduos normais e pacientes com síndrome mielodisplásica (SMD) e leucemia mieloide aguda (LMA), (2) correlacionar a expressão de TET2 e DNMT3A com o fenótipo clínico e sobrevida de pacientes com SMD; (3) investigar a expressão de TET2 e DNMT3A durante a diferenciação celular hematopoética e (4) avaliar o efeito do silenciamento de DNMT3A no fenótipo de linhagens celulares leucêmicas. No presente estudo, verificamos redução na expressão de TET2 em células provenientes de pacientes com SMD e LMA quando comparada à expressão em controles normais (p<.001), e redução em SMD alto risco quando comparada à SMD baixo risco (p=.02). Os resultados em amostras sequenciais de cinco pacientes com SMD indicaram redução da expressão de TET2 no momento da progressão da doença. A análise univariada evidenciou que fatores clínicos tiveram impacto tanto na sobrevida livre de evento como sobrevida global, incluindo a classificação de risco pela OMS 2008 (alto vs. baixo, p<.0001), IPSS (int-2/alto vs. baixo/int-1, p<.0001), hemoglobina (<10 vs. ? 10, p<.05), contagem de leucócitos (< 3 vs. ? 3 x109/L, p<.05), contagem absoluta de neutrófilos (< 1.5 vs. ? 1.5, p<.05) e porcentagem de blastos na medula óssea (? 5 vs. <5 ou ? 10 vs. <10, p<.0004). Além disso, a baixa expressão de TET2 teve impacto negativo na sobrevida livre de evento (HR: 6.51 [2.42-17.49], p=.0002) e na sobrevida global (HR: 7.25 [2.77-18.99], p<.0001). A análise multivariada indicou que a baixa expressão de TET2 (p <.0001), IPSS alto/intermediate-2 (p <.0001), e hemoglobina <10 g/dL (P<.03) são fatores prognósticos para menor sobrevida livre de evento e sobrevida global. Durante a diferenciação eritroide de células CD34+ de indivíduos normais e pacientes com SMD, observamos um aumento significativo da expressão de TET2 (p=. 03). Na avaliação da diferenciação celular de linhagens leucêmicas, observamos aumento significativo na expressão de TET2 durante as diferenciações granulocítica (p=.04) e megacariocítica (p=.03); e um aumento não significativo durante a diferenciação eritrocítica. A expressão de DNMT3A foi semelhante entre pacientes com LMA, SMD e controles normais, e não teve impacto significativo na sobrevida dos pacientes com SMD. A expressão de DNMT3A não foi modulada durante a diferenciação eritroide de células CD34+ de indivíduos normais e pacientes com SMD. Nos modelos de diferenciação celular de linhagens leucêmicas, observamos aumento significativo da expressão de DNMT3A durante a diferenciação granulocítica, mas não durante a diferenciação eritrocítica e megacariocítica. A redução na expressão de DNMT3A não resultou em alteração significativa na apoptose, na proliferação e no ciclo celular em linhagens leucêmicas HL60 e U937. A expressão gênica e proteica de PTEN não foi modulada em células leucêmicas submetidas à inibição de DNMT3A. Os achados aqui descritos sugerem que, similarmente à presença de mutação no TET2, a baixa expressão de TET2 pode participar do processo de transformação celular em SMD de alto risco e LMA; estudos clínicos deveriam considerar a investigação da expressão gênica de TET2 em conjunto com a pesquisa de mutação TET2 na definição de prognóstico. Os resultados de expressão e função de DNMT3A sugerem que a mutação, e não a expressão, deva ser o principal mecanismo pelo qual o DNMT3A participa da transformação neoplásica e que a função de DNMT3A pode depender da linhagem celular estudada / Abstract: Myeloid neoplasms comprise a heterogeneous group of hematologic malignancies that originate from a common myeloid precursor at different stages of differentiation. Cellular changes that lead to development of malignancies may occur through epigenetic mechanisms or genetic alterations. DNMT3A encodes methyltransferases that add methyl groups to cytosine residues in DNA, TET2 promotes hydroxylation of methylated cytosine, and both proteins are important elements in epigenetic control. TET2 and DNMT3A are recurrently mutated in myeloid malignancies, but the prognostic consequence of TET2 and DNMT3A mutation is still controversial. The functional consequences of DNMT3A mutation has not been defined, but the protein silencing in murine progenitor cells promotes self-renewal and reduces cell differentiation. TET2 mutation results in loss of function and participates in the neoplastic transformation of myeloid cells, favoring the proliferation of granulomonocytic cells. However, the expression of TET2 and DNMT3A in these diseases has been rarely addressed. Then, the aims of this study were (1) to evaluate TET2 and DNMT3A gene expression in hematopoietic cells from healthy individuals and from patients with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML); (2) to correlate TET2 and DNMT3A expression with clinical phenotype and outcomes of MDS patients; (3) to investigate TET2 and DNMT3A expression during hematopoietic cell differentiation; and (4) to evaluate the effect of DNMT3A silencing in the phenotype of leukemia cell lines. In this study, the expression of TET2 was decreased in cells from patients with MDS and AML compared to healthy donors (p<.001) and reduced high-risk MDS compared to low risk MDS (p=.02). The results in sequential samples from five patients with MDS indicate reduced expression of TET2 at the time of disease progression. By univariate analysis, clinical factors that significantly affected both event free survival (EFS) and overall survival (OS) included risk stratification by WHO 2008 (high vs. low, p<.0001), IPSS (int-2/high vs. low/int-1, p <.0001), hemoglobin (<10 vs. ? 10, p<.05), white blood cell counts (< 3 vs. ? 3 x109/L, p<.05), absolute neutrophil counts (< 1.5 vs. ? 1.5, p<.05) and bone marrow blast percentage (? 5 vs. <5 or ? 10 vs. <10, p<.0004). Furthermore, low TET2 expression negatively impacted both EFS (HR: 6.51 [2.42-17.49], p=.0002) and OS (HR: 7.25 [2.77-18.99], p<.0001). Multivariate analyses indicated that low TET2 expression (p <.0001), along with IPSS high/intermediate-2 risk group (p <.0001), and hemoglobin <10 g/dL (p<.03) were independently prognostic for worse EFS and OS. During erythroid differentiation of CD34+ cells from normal individuals and patients with low-risk MDS, we observed an increased expression of TET2 (p=.03). During cell differentiation of leukemic cell lines, we observed a significantly increase in the expression of TET2 during granulocytic and megakaryocytic differentiation (p=.04 and p=.03, respectively); there was also an increased expression during erythrocytic differentiation, but this was not statistically significant. The expression of DNMT3A was similar between patients with AML, MDS and healthy donors, and it did not impact survival outcomes in MDS patients. DNMT3A expression was not modulated during erythroid differentiation of CD34+ cells from normal individuals and patients with MDS. In leukemic cell lines models of differentiation, we observed a significantly increase in the DNMT3A expression during granulocytic differentiation, but not in erythrocytic and megakaryocytic differentiation. The DNMT3A silencing did not result in significant changes in apoptosis, proliferation and cell cycle in leukemic cell lines HL60 and U937. PTEN gene and protein expression was not modulated in leukemic cell lines submitted to inhibition of DNMT3A. The findings reported here suggest that, similarly to the presence of TET2 mutations, the low expression of TET2 can participate in the process of cell transformation in high risk MDS and AML. Clinical studies should consider the investigation of TET2 expression together with the studies of TET2 mutation to defining prognosis. Our results of expression and function suggest that DNMT3A mutation, instead of the expression, should be the main mechanism by which DNMT3A participates in neoplastic transformation and that DNMT3A function may vary according to the cell line studied / Mestrado / Clinica Medica / Mestra em Ciências

Orientador: Michel Georges Albert Vincentz / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Biologia / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-21T03:47:47Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Silveira_AmandaBortolini_D.pdf: 6025388 bytes, checksum: 97930bc131f2a0eac6926dae1eeb9319 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012 / Resumo: Modificações epigenéticas do DNA ou da cromatina atuam principalmente no controle da atividade de elementos de transposição, podendo também silenciar genes, geralmente quando estes estão associados a elementos de transposição ou sequências repetidas. Em plantas, alguns alelos epigenéticos afetando caracteres como morfologia floral, florescimento, estatura ou amadurecimento do fruto foram descritos, revelando o potencial deste tipo de regulação para gerar variabilidade fenotípica herdável não necessariamente vinculada a alterações da sequência de DNA. No entanto, o impacto de mecanismos epigenéticos em processos de evolução adaptativa é ainda bastante desconhecido, em parte, pela falta de informação sobre variação epigenética em populações naturais. Identificamos Qua-Quine Starch (QQS) de Arabidopsis thaliana como um gene sob um controle epigenético flexível e, portanto, particularmente propenso a variações epialélicas frequentes na natureza. QQS é um gene recente, que provavelmente originou-se de novo em Arabidopsis thaliana em uma região rica em elementos de transposição. Mostramos que QQS apresenta-se diferencialmente expresso entre acessos naturais assim como entre indivíduos diretamente coletados na natureza e que estas diferenças de expressão estão negativamente correlacionadas com o nível de metilação de sequências repetidas localizadas em sua região promotora e 5' UTR, não estando relacionadas a variação genética em cis ou trans. Mostramos ainda que variação epialélica em QQS é independente do nível de metilação de transposons vizinhos e que pode ser estavelmente herdada entre gerações. Considerando o impacto potencial de padrões de expressão contrastantes de QQS no metabolismo de amido, um importante componente para produção de biomassa e crescimento, sugerimos que variação epialélica em QQS possa ter implicações adaptativas. Nossos dados também apontam pela primeira vez uma ligação potencial entre mecanismos epigenéticos e o processo de evolução de genes novos. Propomos que genes novos, especialmente os de origem de novo, poderiam ser mais propensos a variar epigeneticamente, o que permite um ajuste fino de seu padrão de expressão até que o estado mais vantajoso seja fixado geneticamente / Abstract: Epigenetic modifications of DNA or chromatin control of the activity of transposable elements and can also silence genes which are associated to transposons or repetitive sequences. In plants, epigenetic alleles affecting characters such as floral morphology, flowering, stature or fruit ripening have been described, highlighting the potential of this type of regulation in generating heritable phenotypic diversity, not necessarily linked to DNA sequence alterations. However, the impact of epigenetic mechanisms in adaptative evolution is still largely unknown, in part, due to the lack of information about epiallelic variation in natural populations. We have identified Qua-Quine Starch (QQS) of Arabidopsis thaliana as a gene under flexible epigenetic control and thus particularly prone to epiallelic variation in nature. QQS is a recent gene that likely originated de novo in Arabidopsis thaliana in a transposon-rich region. We show that QQS is differentially expressed among natural accessions as well as among individuals directly sampled from the wild and that these expression differences are negatively correlated with the DNA methylation level of repeat sequences located on QQS promoter and 5'UTR region and are not correlated with cis or trans genetic variation. We also show that epiallelic variation at QQS is independent of the methylation status of nearby transposable elements and can be stably inherited across generations. Considering the potential impact of contrasting QQS expression patterns on starch accumulation, an important component of biomass production and growth, we suggest that epiallelic variation at QQS may have adaptative implications. Our data also points for the first time to a potential link between epigenetic mechanisms and the evolution of novel genes. We suggest that novel genes, more specifically those created de novo, could be endowed with an increased potential for epigenetic variation and thus for adjusting their expression pattern until the most adaptive state becomes genetically fixed / Doutorado / Genetica Vegetal e Melhoramento / Doutor em Genetica e Biologia Molecular

Phenotypic plasticity is the ability of a given genotype to exhibit different phenotypes in response to environmental variables, which can impact population level processes. Plasticity of ecologically-relevant traits is important to an organism’s environmental response; however, the underlying mechanisms of plasticity are largely unknown. Ecological epigenetics may offer mechanisms (e.g. DNA methylation) underlying phenotypic plasticity. Epigenetics can be defined as the underlying molecular mechanisms that allow one genotype to exhibit different phenotypes. Differential DNA methylation is one epigenetic mechanism that has been correlated with a number of ecologically-relevant traits; including, differential herbivory in Viola cazorlensis, spinescence in Ilex aquifolium, flower morphology in Linaria vulgaris, and fitness in Arabidopsis thaliana. The epigenetic correlations with traits found in these studies are interesting, but they are also partially confounded by a potential correlation between genetic and epigenetic variation. Teasing apart the correlation between genetic and epigenetic variation is one of the challenges within ecological epigenetics. This correlation has resulted in epigenetic variation being partitioned into three types by researchers: obligate, facilitated, and pure. Changes in obligate epigenetic variation are directly correlated with genetic variation. Changes in pure epigenetic variation are completely independent from genetic variation. Changes in facilitated epigenetic variation are partially dependent on genetic variation, but the outcome of the phenotype is context-dependent based on environmental conditions. Since our predictions about the outcome of phenotypic variation are driven largely by population genetics theories, which make no room for variation that operates in non-Mendelian ways, epigenetics research needs to utilize unique ways to tease apart the interaction between genetic and epigenetic variation where facilitated or pure epigenetic variation exists outside of the realm of population genetics theory. To address these issues, I performed a literature review and two research-based studies. In Chapter 1 I performed a literature review on the topic of population epigenetics addressing the correlation with genetic variation and recommending an extension to the Modern Synthesis to accommodate the non-Mendelian nature of DNA methylation. While population genetics has approximately 85-years of data to support it, epigenetics is beginning to show some of the limitations associated with predictions made using populations genetics models. One of these limitations is that population genetics as defined by the Modern Synthesis does not allow for violations of Mendelian genetics (i.e. random assortment and segregation of alleles). This limitation does not allow for phenotypic variation that is directly due to environmental conditions; however, recent ecological epigenetics data shows that this can, indeed, occur. Within this review I propose epigenetic questions that we should focus on at the population level, and I make recommendations for how to approach these questions in future studies. In the second and third research-based chapters, I investigated whether an independent component of epigenetic variation was correlated with habitat, while controlling for a correlation with genetic variation, for Spartina alterniflora and Borrichia frutescens, respectively. Previous work has shown that there is no consistent genetic response to environment in these species. I, therefore, hypothesized that there would be a significant epigenetic correlation with habitat instead. To test this hypothesis, I collected leaf samples from five different sites for each species on Sapelo Island, GA. Within each site I established three 10m transects (n=20 for each microhabitat) in low, middle, and high marsh microhabitats, respectively. Plants of both species exhibit different phenotypes for height (tall, intermediate, short, respectively) based on their location within the marsh. I screened AFLP and methylation-sensitive AFLP (MS-AFLP) markers for genetic and epigenetic variation, respectively. I used a variety of statistical tests to attempt to tease apart a potential correlation between genetic and epigenetic variation and found that when genetic population structure is controlled for, significant epigenetic population structure persists across all populations for S. alterniflora and within 3 of 5 populations for B. frutescens. These results suggest that regulation of certain genomic elements via DNA methylation may play an important role in dealing with environmental variables. To fully determine the significance of these findings, future studies should examine the interaction between environmentally-mediated epigenetic variation and gene expression to determine its importance to phenotypic plasticity and habitat differentiation. The body of work I produced supports that epigenetics may play a role in environmental response in populations within relatively small spatial scales. I used a combination of statistical tests to control for potential correlations with genetic variation which allowed me to see patterns that may normally be hidden. These findings expand upon traditional views of evolution by suggesting that environment can play a role in phenotypic variation, and other research supports that the variation due to epigenetic mechanisms can be inherited in future generations. Much of the current epigenetic research is based upon studies involving model species in highly controlled studies. While this research is been incredibly informative about some of the mechanisms underlying epigenetics, to fully understand the role of epigenetics to environmental response and evolution we must pair these data with field studies of non-model organisms. Only then will we begin to see the full role of epigenetics in organisms.

La méthylation et déméthylation de l'ADN jouent un rôle majeur dans la stabilité des génomes, l'empreinte génomique, la paramutation et le développement. En revanche, le rôle de cette régulation épigénétique a été peu étudiée dans les interactions hôtes-pathogènes. Dans ce projet de thèse, nous avons tout d'abord montré que la méthylation de l'ADN régule négativement la résistance d'Arabidopsis thaliana à une souche de Pseudomonas syringae pathogène. Nous avons également identifié un grand nombre de gènes de l'immunité ciblés directement par la méthylation de l'ADN dirigée par petits ARN dans leurs régions promotrices. Nous proposons que cette régulation génique permettrait de maintenir une faible expression basale de ces gènes et d'éviter ainsi des effets délétères qui seraient causés par une expression constitutive de la réponse immunitaire. De plus, nous montrons que la déméthylase active REPRESSOR OF SILENCING 1 (ROS1) facilite l'activation transcriptionnelle de gènes de l'immunité en laissant potentiellement des éléments de régulation en cis accessibles à des facteurs de transcription. Nous avons également démontré que ce facteur contribue à la résistance à P. syringae chez Arabidopsis, caractérisant ainsi la première déméthylase eucaryote dans la résistance antibactérienne. Sur la base de ces résultats, nous proposons que la méthylation de l'ADN maintient une faible expression basale de gènes de l'immunité en absence de pathogène, tandis que la déméthylation active assure une induction rapide de ces gènes au cours de la réponse immunitaire en favorisant potentiellement le recrutement de facteurs de transcription sur la chromatine. / DNA methylation and demethylation are regulatory processes involved in genome stability, genomic imprinting, paramutation and development. Until recently, very little was known about the role of these epigenetic processes in plant disease resistance and in the transcriptional control of immune-responsive genes. Here we provide evidence that DNA methylation negatively regulates antibacterial resistance against a virulent Pseudomonas syringae strain in Arabidopsis. Accordingly, we have identified a subset of defense genes that are targeted and repressed by RNA-directed DNA methylation (RdDM), presumably to prevent trade-off effects that would be caused by their constitutive expression and/or sustained induction. In addition, we found that the active DNA demethylase facilitates the transcriptional activation of some of these defense genes by pruning DNA methylation at their promoter regions and leaving cis-elements accessible for transcription factor binding. In addition, we show that the active demethylase REPRESSOR OF SILENCING 1 (ROS1) positively regulates late immune responses including Pathogen Associated Molecular Pattern (PAMP)-triggered callose deposition and salicylic acid (SA)-dependent defense response. We also demonstrate that ROS1 restricts Pto DC3000 propagation in Arabidopsis leaf secondary veins, providing the first example for a role of an active DNA demethylase in antibacterial resistance. Based on these findings we propose that DNA methylation maintains a low basal expression of some immune-responsive genes in normal growth condition, while active DNA demethylation ensures a rapid and pervasive induction of these genes upon bacterial pathogen detection.

It has been known for a long time that the cytosine base can be modified to produce a new nucleotide, identified as 5-methylcytosine (mC). In normal cells, mC is correctly distributed into the genome, but in many diseases including life-threatening cancers, its pattern is profoundly perturbed. In 2009, Anjana Rao, published that certain proteins, known as the TET enzymes, are capable of removing mC by further oxidizing it to 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (hmC). This original article, cited more than 1200 times, has led to a great expansion in our understanding of DNA methylation. Such recent publications expanded this knowledge by showing that the TETs successively oxidize hmC to 5-formylcytosine (fC) and 5-carboxylcytosine (caC). <p>These oxidized methylcytosines have been implicated in several mechanisms of DNA demethylation, including “active” demethylation through base excision repair, and “passive” demethylation via successive rounds of DNA replication. In addition, DNA hydroxymethylation is thought to be involved in a wide range of diseases, and a marked decrease of hmC seems to be a “hallmark” of many cancers. <p>However, little is known about the regulation of their modes of action. It is tempting to speculate that these proteins interact with a plethora of factors to elicit coordinated biological functions. Likewise, they might be regulated by environment, which in certain situations, could alter the hydroxymethylome landscape, and lead to cellular malfunction and diseases.<p>In the first study, we pursued a large, unbiased screen of the TET interactome, and discovered that TET2 and TET3 interact with the O-linked N-acetylglucosamine (O-GlcNAc) transferase (OGT). OGT is a glycosyltransferase that adds N-acetylglucose moieties on various proteins, including histone H2B, expanding therefore the “histone code”. We further discovered that the TET-OGT association seems to enhance OGT activity and to potentiate glycosylation and stabilization of SET1/COMPASS, a complex that is responsible for the global deposition of the H3K4me3 histone mark that “decorates” active promoters. Finally, we could confirm a decreased genome-wide H3K4me3 deposition in a model of acute myeloid leukemia mutated for TET2, suggesting that the TET-OGT link is implicated in Health and Disease.<p>In the second study, we looked at the impact of the environment on TET activity and on cellular hydroxymethylomes. We focused on oxidative stress assaults that are known to be involved in inflammation, a mediator of cancer and neurodegenerative diseases. We observed a significant decrease of hmC in cell lines treated with various oxidant stressors, likely due to a direct inactivation of the TETs catalytic domain. Moreover, gene ontology analysis of differentially hydroxymethylated regions (dhMRs), profiled by deep-sequencing on treated vs non-treated cells, highlighted pathways involved in oxidative stress response. The implication of TETs in oxidative stress response was further emphasized by a decreased proliferation of TET1-depleted cells when they are treated with oxidant stressors. Importantly, those results were confirmed in mice knockout for the major antioxidant enzymes GPx1 and GPx2. <p>In conclusion, the work of this thesis contributed to better understand the modes of action of the TET proteins, through (1) direct interaction with OGT, and (2) via direct regulation by oxidative-stress-associated molecules, and we hope that these results will bring new insights to better understand these fascinating enzymes. <p> / Doctorat en Sciences biomédicales et pharmaceutiques / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Le cartilage articulaire est un tissu avasculaire ayant une faible capacité de régénération. Ce tissu est essentiellement constitué d’un type cellulaire, les chondrocytes, inclus dans une matrice extracellulaire abondante et de composition très spécifique. L’arthrose, la maladie touchant le cartilage la plus fréquente, est caractérisée par la perte progressive de cette matrice extracellulaire, ce qui conduit à l’érosion des surfaces articulaires. Les causes sont multiples et encore mal comprises: inflammation, génétique, mécanique etc... Plusieurs études ont récemment mis en évidence l’implication des mécanismes épigénétiques dans la réponse des chondrocytes aux cytokines inflammatoires (contribuant au catabolisme du tissu).Notre but a été d’étudier le rôle encore peu exploré de ces mécanismes dans la synthèse de la matrice extracellulaire du cartilage (contribuant à l'anabolisme). En utilisant des chondrocytes articulaires humains en culture primaire, nous avons identifié des marques de méthylation de l'ADN étroitement associées à l’expression de gènes codant les principaux composants de la matrice cartilagineuse. Ceci apporte un nouvel éclairage sur l’instabilité du phénotype chondrocytaire. De plus, nous décrivons pour la première fois l'implication de la lysine déméthylase LSD1 (une enzyme modifiant l'état de la chromatine dont l’expression est augmentée dans le cartilage arthrosique), dans la régulation génique d'un collagène du cartilage, le collagène de type IX. L’ensemble des résultats met en évidence de nouveaux mécanismes de régulation génique dans les chondrocytes articulaires, qui pourraient être impliqués dans le développement de l’arthrose / The articular cartilage is an avascular tissue displaying a very limited regenerative capacity. This tissue is mainly composed of one cell type, the chondrocytes, which are embedded within an abundant and highly specialized extracellular matrix. Osteoarthritis, which is the most common joint disease, is characterized by the progressive loss of that matrix, leading to the erosion of articular surface. The causes of this pathology are multiple (genetic, biomechanical, inflammatory…) and are still not fully understood. Several studies have recently highlighted the involvement of epigenetic mechanisms in the chondrocyte response to inflammatory cytokines (contributing to cartilage catabolism).The aim of our work was to investigate the unexplored role of the epigenetic mechanisms in the ability of chondrocytes to synthesize the cartilage-specific matrix (contributing to cartilage anabolism). Using primary culture of human articular chondrocytes, we identified a DNA methylation profile closely associated with the expression of the genes encoding the main structural components of the extracellular matrix. These findings bring new insights in the comprehension of chondrocyte phenotype instability. Moreover, we report for the first time the involvement of the lysine demethylase LSD1, a chromatin-modifying enzyme highly expressed in osteoarthritic tissue, in the gene regulation of COL9A1, a cartilage-specific collagen. Altogether, these results highlight new mechanisms of gene regulation in articular chondrocytes, which may be involved in the development of osteoarthritis

The discovery of epigenetic mechanisms has ignited speculation into their role in ecological and evolutionary processes. In particular, the contribution of epigenetic variation to adaptation or phenotypic plasticity that is distinct from genetic variation would be an important addition to existing evolutionary mechanisms. Although the research of epigenetic mechanisms from an ecological and evolutionary (or eco-evolutionary) perspective has been growing, it is still unclear how epigenetic variation might function in natural populations and settings and to what extent it might serve to mediate population response to changing environmental conditions over time. Over the course of my dissertation, I explored the importance of DNA methylation in population response to a variety of environmental conditions. In the first chapter of my dissertation, I reviewed existing literature on the relationship between DNA methylation and environmental response. I argued that given the weight of current evidence, DNA methylation, in addition to other epigenetic mechanisms, needs to be included the evolutionary synthesis. Additionally, I identified a number of outstanding questions and outlined research directions that would help elucidate the role of epigenetic mechanisms in evolution. In my second chapter, I studied the genetic and epigenetic composition of populations of Spartina alterniflora that were impacted by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010. Current evolutionary theory predicts that following a severe environmental stressor, populations may experience a bottleneck effect, in which one or only a few genotypes survive to reproduce in subsequent generations. However, it is unclear whether these patterns are reflected in epigenetic variation as well, because novel environmental perturbations may serve to induce epigenetic variation rather than diminish it. We found a significant genetic signature of oil exposure in exposed populations, but did not see a similar effect in the epigenetic composition of exposed populations. These data suggest that epigenetic modifications, such as DNA methylation, may not always increase in number during stressful episodes, but may instead follow genetic variation. These results provide valuable information for the development of nascent population epigenetic theory, and may help parameterize expectations about conditions that provoke epigenetic variation, particularly when genetic variation may be limited. In addition to strong, unpredictable stressors, populations also respond via phenotypic changes over time through developmental stages and life histories that coincide with seasonal, regular environmental cues. Epigenetic mechanisms influence these regulatory and developmental changes that occur within an individual over time. In my third chapter, I examined the epigenetic response to seasonality in multiple coastal plant species. We found a weak signature of single methylation polymorphisms that was associated with seasonal environmental change within the studied species, as well as global patterns of methylation that were consistent across species. The results of this study indicate the possibility of conservation of methylation patterns across phylogenetic histories. In my fourth chapter, I explored in detail how the ability to maintain methylation might affect stress response. We compared individuals of the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana that were deficient in maintenance methylation machinery to control genotypes under both abiotic and biotic stresses, and then studied the growth of their offspring in the absence of stress. We found inherited phenotypic signatures of parental stress in the offspring generation and interactive effects of parental stress and genotype. This study not only reinforces the correlations that we observed in our field studies, but adds to the growing body of literature highlighting the importance of DNA methylation both in immediate environmental response and as a mechanism for heritability. Overall, this dissertation demonstrates that DNA methylation is highly abundant in natural populations and may be part of the response to various stressors at a number of time scales. The integration of DNA methylation in the evolutionary synthesis will aid in the explanation of phenomena such as phenotypic plasticity or adaptation, and will be an important contribution to the existing body of evolutionary mechanisms.

Recently, long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) emerged as important regulators of many cellular functions. Many nuclear lncRNAs regulate the expression of geomically proximal or overlapping protein coding genes. Less clear is whether intergenic lncRNAs can regulate transcription by modulating chromatin at genomically distant loci in an RNA-dependent manner. This thesis investigated molecular functions of Dali, an intergenic central nervous system expressed lncRNA conserved in therian mammals. Dali is transcribed from a locus 50 kb downstream of the Pou3f3 transcription factor gene and performs both genomically local and distal RNA-dependent roles. Its depletion disrupts the differentiation of neuroblastoma cells. Locally, Dali regulates transcription of the Pou3f3 locus. Distally, it preferentially binds near to and regulates active promoters across the genome, including by physically associating with the POU3F3 transcription factor. Dali also interacts with the DNMT1 DNA methyltransferase in mouse and human and regulates CpG island-associated promoters by modulating their DNA methylation levels in trans. This work is the first to demonstrate that a lncRNA can regulate the DNA methylation of CpG island-associated promoters in trans and one of the first large scale studies to identify direct transcriptional targets of a lncRNA genome-wide. It also provides a more detailed molecular dissection of the extended Pou3f3 locus and a framework for the prioritisation and comprehensive functional characterisation of nuclear lncRNAs.

Les gènes soumis à empreinte (GSE) se distinguent du reste du génome par une expression mono-allélique et parent-spécifique. Cette forme de régulation génique dépend de marques de méthylation différentielles héritées des gamètes parentaux au niveau de régions cis-régulatrices appelées ICR (« Imprinting Control Region »). Une centaine de GSE contrôlés par 20 ICR ont été répertoriés chez la souris et sont en général conservés chez l’Homme. Mon projet de thèse a consisté à caractériser de nouvelles ICR maternelles et à analyser leur impact sur la régulation génique, à partir d’un criblage génomique de méthylation réalisé chez la souris. J’ai ainsi participé à la révélation de l’existence de trois formes d’empreinte, qui résultent de sensibilité différente des ICR face aux changements développementaux des profils de méthylation génomique: 1) une empreinte persistante tout au long de la vie et ubiquitaire, qui caractérise les ICR classiques déjà connues, 2) transitoire, avec une existence limitée au développement pré-implantatoire, et 3) persistante tout au long de la vie mais tissu-spécifique. Plus précisément, j’ai déterminé les profils d’histones associées aux ICR des loci Cdh15 et Gpr1/Zdbf2, et mis en évidence la conservation de l’empreinte transitoire au locus GPR1/ZDBF2 chez l’humain. Je me suis ensuite focalisée sur l’ICR candidate associée au gène Socs5, dont l’empreinte s’est avérée être tissu-spécifique mais également, de façon inédite, polymorphique en fonction des lignées de souris. Cette ICR en position intragénique présente les caractéristiques d’une séquence « enhancer », hypothèse que je teste actuellement par invalidation fonctionnelle (système CRISPR/Cas9) chez la souris. La découverte de ces formes atypiques d’empreinte génomique permet de mieux cerner l’étendue du phénomène d’empreinte parentale et d’évaluer son impact sur les phénotypes. / Genomic imprinting refers to the functional non-equivalence of the two parental genomes in mammals. Imprinted genes are expressed only from the paternal or maternal allele: this mono-allelic expression is regulated by parent-inherited DNA methylation of specific cis-regulatory regions called ICRs (Imprinting Control Regions). There are currently around 120 imprinted genes known in the mouse genome, which are under the control of 20 characterized ICRs, and are generally conserved in Human. My thesis project aimed at characterizing new maternal ICRs and at analyzing their impact on gene regulation, based on a genome-wide methylation screen conducted in the mouse. I participated to revealing the existence of three forms of genomic imprinting, which reflects variable susceptibility to developmentally-regulated DNA methylation changes: 1) ubiquitous and life-long imprinting, which refers to the 20 canonical ICRs, 2) transient, whose existence is limited to preimplantation development, and 3) tissue-specific. More specifically, I deciphered the histone modification profiles of two new maternal ICR associated with the Cdh15 and the Gpr1/Zdbf2 loci and confirmed that the GPR1/ZDBF2 locus is also subject to transient imprinting in Human. My main achievement concerns the characterization of a candidate ICR associated with the Socs5 gene, which I found to be tissue-specific but also strain-specific, pointing towards a new form of imprinting polymorphism. This ICR has an intragenic position and has the characteristics of an enhancer, hypothesis that I am functionally testing in vivo by a CRISPR/Cas9-mediated deletion. The discovery of these new forms of genomic imprinting provides a better understanding of this phenomenon and its impact on phenotypes.

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the causative agent of tuberculosis, is estimated to infect approximately one-third of the world’s population and is responsible for around 2 million deaths per year. The disease is endemic in South Africa which has one of the world’s highest tuberculosis incidence and death rates. The M. tuberculosis Beijing genotype are characterised by having an enhanced virulence capability over other M. tuberculosis strains and are the predominant strain observed in the Western Cape of South Africa. DNA methylation is a largely untapped area of research in M.tuberculosis and has been poorly described in the literature especially given its connection to virulence despite it being well characterised along with its role in virulence in other pathogenic bacteria such as E.coli. The overall aim was to characterise a global DNA methylation profile for two M. tuberculosis Beijing strains, hyper-virulent and hypo-virulent, using single molecule real time sequencing data technology. Moreover, to determine if adenine methylation in promoter regions has a possible functional role. This study identified and characterised the DNA methylation profile at the single nucleotide resolution in these strains using Pacific Biosciences single molecule real time sequencing data. A computational approach was used to discern DNA methylation patterns between the hyper and hypo-virulent strains with a view of understanding virulence in the hyper-virulent strain. Methylated motifs, which belong to known Restriction Modification (RM) systems of the H37Rv referencegenome were also identified. N6-methyladenine (m6A) and N4-methlycytosine (m4C) loci were identified in both strains. m6A were idenitified in both strains occuring within the following sequence motifs CACGCAG (Type II RM system), GATNNNNRTAC/GTAYNNNNATC (Type I RM system), while the CTGGAGGA motif was found to be uniquley methylated in the hyper-virulentstrain.Interestingly, the CACGCAG motif was significantly methylated (p = 9.9 x10 -63) at a higher proportion in intergenic regions (~70%) as opposed to genic regions in both the hyper-virulent and hypo-virulent strains suggesting a role in gene regulation. There appeared to be a higher proportion of m6A occuring in intergenic regions compared to within genes for hyper-virulent (61%) and hypo-virulent (62%) strains. The genic proportion revealed that 35% of total m6A occurred uniquely within genes for the hyper-virulent strain while 27.9% for uniquely methylated genes in hypo-virulent strain.