Institute of Reproductive Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei 430030, China.
NHC Key Laboratory of Male Reproduction and Genetics, Guangdong Provincial Reproductive Science Institute, Guangzhou 510600, China.
Nucleic Acids Res. 2022 Jul 8;50(12):6786-6800. doi: 10.1093/nar/gkac533.
Spermatogenesis is precisely controlled by sophisticated gene expression programs and is driven by epigenetic reprogramming, including histone modification alterations and histone-to-protamine transition. Nuclear receptor binding SET domain protein 2 (Nsd2) is the predominant histone methyltransferase catalyzing H3K36me2 and its role in male germ cell development remains elusive. Here, we report that NSD2 protein is abundant in spermatogenic cells. Conditional loss of Nsd2 in postnatal germ cells impaired fertility owing to apoptosis of spermatocytes and aberrant spermiogenesis. Nsd2 deficiency results in dysregulation of thousands of genes and remarkable reduction of both H3K36me2 and H3K36me3 in spermatogenic cells, with H3K36me2 occupancy correlating positively with expression of germline genes. Nsd2 deficiency leads to H4K16ac elevation in spermatogenic cells, probably through interaction between NSD2 and PSMA8, which regulates acetylated histone degradation. We further reveal that Nsd2 deficiency impairs EP300-induced H4K5/8ac, recognized by BRDT to mediate the eviction of histones. Accordingly, histones are largely retained in Nsd2-deficient spermatozoa. In addition, Nsd2 deficiency enhances expression of protamine genes, leading to increased protamine proteins in Nsd2-deficient spermatozoa. Our findings thus reveal a previously unappreciated role of the Nsd2-dependent chromatin remodeling during spermatogenesis and provide clues to the molecular mechanisms in epigenetic abnormalities impacting male reproductive health.
精子发生受到复杂的基因表达程序的精确控制,并受到表观遗传重编程的驱动,包括组蛋白修饰改变和组蛋白向鱼精蛋白的转变。核受体结合 SET 域蛋白 2(Nsd2)是主要的组蛋白甲基转移酶,催化 H3K36me2,但其在雄性生殖细胞发育中的作用仍不清楚。在这里,我们报告 NSD2 蛋白在生殖细胞中丰富表达。出生后生殖细胞中 Nsd2 的条件性缺失导致精子细胞凋亡和精子发生异常,从而损害生育能力。Nsd2 缺乏导致数千个基因的失调,以及生殖细胞中 H3K36me2 和 H3K36me3 的显著减少,H3K36me2 占据与生殖系基因的表达呈正相关。Nsd2 缺乏导致生殖细胞中 H4K16ac 升高,可能是由于 NSD2 和 PSMA8 之间的相互作用,后者调节乙酰化组蛋白的降解。我们进一步揭示,Nsd2 缺乏会损害 EP300 诱导的 H4K5/8ac,BRDT 通过该作用介导组蛋白的排出。因此,组蛋白在 Nsd2 缺乏的精子中大量保留。此外,Nsd2 缺乏增强了鱼精蛋白基因的表达,导致 Nsd2 缺乏的精子中鱼精蛋白蛋白增加。我们的研究结果因此揭示了 Nsd2 依赖性染色质重塑在精子发生中的先前未被认识的作用,并为影响男性生殖健康的表观遗传异常的分子机制提供了线索。