Identification of PBRM-1/PBAF-regulated genes using a tissue-specific knockout in mesodermal tissues

The Caenorhabditis elegans somatic gonadal precursors (SGPs) are multipotent progenitors that generate all somatic cells of the adult reproductive system. The SGPs originate in the mesodermal layer and are born through a division that produces one SGP and one head mesodermal cell (hmc). One hmc terminally differentiates and the other dies by programmed cell death. The PBAF chromatin remodeling complex promotes the multipotent SGP fate. We used a combination of Cre/lox recombination and GFP nanobody-directed protein degradation to eliminate PBRM-1, the signature subunit of the PBAF complex, from SGPs, followed by RNA sequencing to identify genes acting downstream of PBAF.