Cabianca Daphne S, Gasser Susan M
a Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research , Basel , Switzerland.
b Faculty of Natural Sciences , University of Basel , Basel , Switzerland.
Nucleus. 2016 May 3;7(3):301-7. doi: 10.1080/19491034.2016.1187354.
Multiple layers of regulation are required to ensure appropriate patterns of gene expression for accurate cell differentiation. Interphase chromatin is non-randomly distributed within the nucleus, with highly compacted, transcriptionally silent heterochromatin enriched at the nuclear and nucleolar periphery. Whether this spatial organization serves a function in organismal physiology, rather than simply being a byproduct of chromatin metabolism, is a fundamental question. Recent work performed in C. elegans embryos characterized the molecular mechanisms that drive the perinuclear anchoring of heterochromatin. Moreover, for the first time it was shown that heterochromatin sequestration helps to restrict cell differentiation programs, while sustaining commitment to a specified fate. Here, we describe and comment on these findings, placing them in a broader context.
需要多层调控来确保基因表达的适当模式，以实现精确的细胞分化。间期染色质在细胞核内呈非随机分布，高度压缩、转录沉默的异染色质富集于核膜和核仁周边。这种空间组织在机体生理过程中是否发挥作用，而非仅仅是染色质代谢的副产物，是一个基本问题。最近在秀丽隐杆线虫胚胎中开展的研究描绘了驱动异染色质核周锚定的分子机制。此外，首次表明异染色质隔离有助于限制细胞分化程序，同时维持对特定命运的定向。在此，我们描述并评论这些发现，并将其置于更广泛的背景中。
