Liz transcription is required for evicting H3K27me3 marks at the Gpr1/Zdbf2 locus through the deposition of DNA methylation marks.. Mus musculus

To study the role of the Liz transcript on local chromatin features during early development, we used a culture-based system. Mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) with a hypomethylated genome were obtained through their culture in 2i medium supplemented with vitamin C. To recapitulate de novo DNA methylation, these cells were directed towards an epiblast-like cell fate (EpiLC) during seven days of culture in Activin A and Fgf2. The effect of Liz transcription on the maintenance of H3K27me3 marks at the Gpr1/Zdbf2 locus was inferred by the comparative ChIP-seq analysis of H3K27me3 enrichment in WT (E14) cells versus ∆Liz cells- which carry a TALEN-engineered 1.7kb homozygous deletion of the Liz Transcription Start Size (TSS)- at Day 0 (D0), D4 and D7 of EpiLC differentiation. Overall design: H3K27me3 profiles were generated at three time points during differentiation in wild-type and mutant cells lacking the Liz RNA