Epigenetic requirements for triggering heterochromatinization and Piwi-interacting RNA production from transgenes in the Drosophila germline

Transgenes containing a fragment of I transposon represent a powerful model of piRNA cluster de novo formation in the Drosophila germline. We revealed that the same transgenes located at different genomic loci form piRNA clusters with various capacity of small RNA production. Transgenic piRNA clusters are not established in piRNA pathway mutants. However, in wild-type context, the endogenous ancestral I-related piRNAs are sufficient to heterochromatinize and convert the I-containing transgenes into piRNA-producing loci. Here, we address how the quantitative level of piRNAs influences the heterochromatinization and piRNA production. We show that neither the piRNAs mediated by active I-element copies nor inheritance of abundant maternal I-derived piRNAs enable to stimulate additional changes of transgenes chromatin state or piRNA production from them. Therefore, chromatin changes and piRNA production are initiated by a minimum threshold level of complementary piRNAs suggesting a selective advantage of prompt cell response to the lowest level of piRNAs. Noteworthy, the weak piRNA clusters do not transform into strong ones after being targeted by a larger amount of I-specific piRNAs, indicating the importance of the genomic context for piRNA cluster establishment. Analysis of ovarian transcription profiles suggests that regions facilitating convergent transcription favor formation of transgenic piRNA clusters . This study aims at understanding the quantitative level of small RNAs required for heterochromatinization and piRNA production from trangenes in the Drosphila germline using small RNA-seq and GRO-seq in adult ovaries of transgenic Drosophila strains.