Arunkumar Dhayalan

THE DNMT3A PWWP domain reads histone 3 lysine 36 trimethylation and guides DNA methylation

The Dnmt3a DNA methyltransferase contains in its N-terminal part a PWWP domain that is involved in chromatin targeting. Here, we have investigated the interaction of the PWWP domain with modified histone tails using peptide arrays and show that it specifically recognizes the histone 3 lysine 36 trimethylation mark. H3K36me3 is known to be a repressive modification correlated with DNA methylation in mammals and heterochromatin in Schizosaccharomyces pombe. These results were confirmed by equilibrium peptide binding studies and pulldown experiments with native histones and purified native nucleosomes. The PWWP-H3K36me3 interaction is important for the subnuclear localization of enhanced yellow fluorescent protein-fused Dnmt3a. Furthermore, the PWWP-H3K36me3 interaction increases the activity of Dnmt3a for methylation of nucleosomal DNA as observed using native nucleosomes isolated from human cells after demethylation of the DNA with 5-aza-2′-deoxycytidine as substrate for methylation with Dnmt3a. These data suggest that the interaction of the PWWP domain with H3K36me3 is involved in targeting of Dnmt3a to chromatin carrying that mark, a model that is in agreement with several studies on the genome-wide distribution of DNA methylation and H3K36me3.

Protein lysine methyltransferase G9a acts on non-histone targets

By methylation of peptide arrays, we determined the specificity profile of the protein methyltransferase G9a. We show that it mostly recognizes an Arg-Lys sequence and that its activity is inhibited by methylation of the arginine residue. Using the specificity profile, we identified new non-histone protein targets of G9a, including CDYL1, WIZ, ACINUS and G9a (automethylation), as well as peptides derived from CSB. We demonstrate potential downstream signaling pathways for methylation of non-histone proteins.

Chromatin methylation activity of Dnmt3a and Dnmt3a/3L is guided by interaction of the ADD domain with the histone H3 tail

Using peptide arrays and binding to native histone proteins, we show that the ADD domain of Dnmt3a specifically interacts with the H3 histone 1–19 tail. Binding is disrupted by di- and trimethylation of K4, phosphorylation of T3, S10 or T11 and acetylation of K4. We did not observe binding to the H4 1–19 tail. The ADD domain of Dnmt3b shows the same binding specificity, suggesting that the distinct biological functions of both enzymes are not related to their ADD domains. To establish a functional role of the ADD domain binding to unmodified H3 tails, we analyzed the DNA methylation of in vitro reconstituted chromatin with Dnmt3a2, the Dnmt3a2/Dnmt3L complex, and the catalytic domain of Dnmt3a. All Dnmt3a complexes preferentially methylated linker DNA regions. Chromatin substrates with unmodified H3 tail or with H3K9me3 modification were methylated more efficiently by full-length Dnmt3a and full-length Dnmt3a/3L complexes than chromatin trimethylated at H3K4. In contrast, the catalytic domain of Dnmt3a was not affected by the H3K4me3 modification. These results demonstrate that the binding of the ADD domain to H3 tails unmethylated at K4 leads to the preferential methylation of DNA bound to chromatin with this modification state. Our in vitro results recapitulate DNA methylation patterns observed in genome-wide DNA methylation studies.

The ATRX-ADD domain binds to H3 tail peptides and reads the combined methylation state of K4 and K9

Mutations in the ATRX protein are associated with the alpha-thalassemia and mental retardation X-linked syndrome (ATR-X). Almost half of the disease-causing mutations occur in its ATRX-Dnmt3-Dnmt3L (ADD) domain. By employing peptide arrays, chromatin pull-down and peptide binding assays, we show specific binding of the ADD domain to H3 histone tail peptides containing H3K9me3. Peptide binding was disrupted by the presence of the H3K4me3 and H3K4me2 modification marks indicating that the ATRX-ADD domain has a combined readout of these two important marks (absence of H3K4me2 and H3K4me3 and presence of H3K9me3). Disease-causing mutations reduced ATRX-ADD binding to H3 tail peptides. ATRX variants, which fail in the H3K9me3 interaction, show a loss of heterochromatic localization in cells, which indicates the chromatin targeting function of the ADD domain of ATRX. Disruption of H3K9me3 binding may be a general pathogenicity pathway of ATRX mutations in the ADD domain which may explain the clustering of disease mutations in this part of the ATRX protein.

Detailed specificity analysis of antibodies binding to modified histone tails with peptide arrays.

Chromatin structure is greatly influenced by histone tail post-translational modifications (PTM), which also play a central role in epigenetic processes. Antibodies against modified histone tails are central research reagents in chromatin biology and molecular epigenetics. We applied Celluspots peptide arrays for the specificity analysis of 36 commercial antibodies from different suppliers which are directed towards modified histone tails. The arrays contained 384 peptides from 8 different regions of the N-terminal tails of histones, viz. H3 1-19, 7-26, 16-35 and 26-45, H4 1-19 and 11-30, H2A 1-19 and H2B 1-19, featuring 59 post-translational modifications in many different combinations. Using various controls we document the reliability of the method. Our analysis revealed previously undocumented details in the specificity profile. Most of the antibodies bound well to the PTM they have been raised for, but some failed. In addition some antibodies showed high cross-reactivity and most antibodies were inhibited by specific additional PTMs close to the primary one. Furthermore, specificity profiles for antibodies directed towards the same modification sometimes were very different. The specificity of antibodies used in epigenetic research is an important issue. We provide a catalog of antibody specificity profiles for 36 widely used commercial histone tail PTM antibodies. Better knowledge about the specificity profiles of antibodies will enable researchers to implement necessary control experiments in biological studies and allow more reliable interpretation of biological experiments using these antibodies.

Application of Celluspots peptide arrays for the analysis of the binding specificity of epigenetic reading domains to modified histone tails

BackgroundEpigenetic reading domains are involved in the regulation of gene expression and chromatin state by interacting with histones in a post-translational modification specific manner. A detailed knowledge of the target modifications of reading domains, including enhancing and inhibiting secondary modifications, will lead to a better understanding of the biological signaling processes mediated by reading domains.ResultsWe describe the application of Celluspots peptide arrays which contain 384 histone peptides carrying 59 post translational modifications in different combinations as an inexpensive, reliable and fast method for initial screening for specific interactions of reading domains with modified histone peptides. To validate the method, we tested the binding specificities of seven known epigenetic reading domains on Celluspots peptide arrays, viz. the HP1ß and MPP8 Chromo domains, JMJD2A and 53BP1 Tudor domains, Dnmt3a PWWP domain, Rag2 PHD domain and BRD2 Bromo domain. In general, the binding results agreed with literature data with respect to the primary specificity of the reading domains, but in almost all cases we obtained additional new information concerning the influence of secondary modifications surrounding the target modification.ConclusionsWe conclude that Celluspots peptide arrays are powerful screening tools for studying the specificity of putative reading domains binding to modified histone peptides.

A Continuous Protein Methyltransferase (G9a) Assay for Enzyme Activity Measurement and Inhibitor Screening

The authors describe a continuous protein methylation assay using the G9a protein lysine methyltransferase and its substrate protein WIZ (widely interspaced zinc finger motifs). The assay is based on the coupling of the biotinylated substrate protein to streptavidin-coated FlashPlates and the transfer of radioactive methyl groups from the S-adenosyl-L-methionine to the substrate. The reaction progress is monitored continuously by proximity scintillation counting. The assay is very accurate, convenient, well suited for automation, and highly reproducible with standard errors in the range of 5%. Because of few pipetting steps and continuous data readout, it is ideal for high-throughput applications such as screening of inhibitors, testing many enzyme variants, or analyzing differences in methylation rates of different substrates under various conditions. By using this new assay, the IC 50 of AdoHcy and the G9a inhibitor BIX-01294 were determined for methylation of the G9a nonhistone substrate WIZ. (Journal of Biomolecular Screening 2009:1129-1133)

The SET8 H4K20 protein lysine methyltransferase has a long recognition sequence covering seven amino acid residues.

The SET8 histone lysine methyltransferase, which monomethylates the histone 4 lysine 20 residue plays important roles in cell cycle control and genomic stability. By employing peptide arrays we have shown that it has a long recognition sequence motif covering seven amino acid residues, viz. R(17)-H(18)-(R(19)KY)-K(20)-(V(21)ILFY)-(L(22)FY)-R(23). Celluspots peptide array methylation studies confirmed specific monomethylation of H4K20 and revealed that the symmetric and asymmetric methylation on R(17) of the H4 tail inhibits methylation on H4K20. Similarly, dimethylation of the R located at the -3 position also reduced methylation of p53 K382 which had been shown previously to be methylated by SET8. Based on the derived specificity profile, we identified 4 potential non-histone substrate proteins. After relaxing the specificity profile, we identified several more candidate substrates and showed efficient methylation of 20 novel non-histone peptides by SET8. However, apart from H4 and p53 none of the identified novel peptide targets was methylated at the protein level. Since H4 and p53 both contain the target lysine in an unstructured part of the protein, we conclude that the long recognition sequence of SET8 makes it difficult to methylate a lysine in a folded region of a protein, because amino acid side chains essential for recognition will be buried.

The ankyrin repeat domain of Huntingtin interacting protein 14 contains a surface aromatic cage, a potential site for methyl- lysine binding

Huntingtin interacting protein 14 (HIP14), a membrane-bound palmitoyl transferase, palmitoylates a number of neuronal proteins (including Huntingtin) and affects the trafficking, stability, aggregation, and/or functional activity of substrate proteins. HIP14 contains an N-terminal ankyrin repeat domain that may function in its substrate recognition. Sequence analysis suggests that the HIP14 ankyrin repeats share approximately 50% identity with the ankyrin repeats of G9a and G9a-like protein (GLP) histone lysine methyltransferases. The crystal structure of the HIP14 ankyrin repeats reveals a surface aromatic cage, formed by two tryptophans, one tyrosine, and one methionine. The all-hydrophobic cage resembles the tri-methylated lysine binding pocket of the plant homeodomain (PHD) of human BPTF (bromodomain and PHD domain transcription factor) 1. HIP14, a Huntingtin interacting protein 2, is a 633-residue protein, including 7-8 ankyrin repeats in the N-terminal region followed by five predicted transmembrane helices. The protein contains a signature DHHC palmitoyl transferases motif located close to the predicted fourth transmembrane helix 3. Importantly, the ankyrin repeats (a protein-protein interaction domain that may function in substrate recognition) and the DHHC sequence (the hypothetical active site) are both predicted to reside on the cytoplasmic face of the lipid bilayer 4, presumably allowing the substrate recognition and the active site to interact with the same substrate. Posttranslational palmitoylation involves the attachment of the saturated C16 fatty acid palmitate to specific cysteines via a thioester linkage 5-7. HIP14 palmitoylates Huntingtin at cysteine 214 8. Other substrates of HIP14-mediated palmitoylation include SNAP-25 (synaptosome associated protein 25 kDa), PSD-95 (postsynaptic density 95 kDa), GAD-65 (glutamate decarboxylase 65 kDa), and Synaptotagmin I 9. Ankyrin repeats are known to mediate protein-protein interactions 10. Recently we showed that the ankyrin repeat domains of G9a and GLP, two euchromatin associated histone lysine methyltranferases, bind N-terminal histone H3 peptides containing mono- or di-methylated lysine 9 (H3K9me1, me2) via a partial aromatic cage with three tryptophans and one acidic residue 11. Besides the ankyrin repeats of G9a and GLP, other protein domains including the Chromodomain 12, plant homeodomain 1,13-15, and Tudor domain 16, also recognize methylated lysines (Review 17). The common mode of methyl-lysine interactions is via a surface aromatic cage consisting of 2-4 aromatic residues. These aromatic cages are highly selective for methyllysine. In a study of Chromodomain-methyllysine interaction, binding was driven primarily by cation-π interactions (i.e, a methyllysine carries a positive charge), and secondarily by the packing of methyl group(s) against the aromatic ring(s) of the cage, with the hydrophobic effect contributing the least to binding 18. This eliminates the possibility of such cages generically binding hydrophobic residues, and suggests that other methyllysine binding ankyrin repeats could be identified by the presence of a surface aromatic cage.

The Tudor domain of the PHD finger protein 1 is a dual reader of lysine trimethylation at lysine 36 of histone H3 and lysine 27 of histone variant H3t.

PHF1 associates with the Polycomb repressive complex 2 and it was demonstrated to stimulate its H3K27-trimethylation activity. We studied the interaction of the PHF1 Tudor domain with modified histone peptides and found that it recognizes H3K36me3 and H3tK27me3 (on the histone variant H3t) and that it uses the same trimethyllysine binding pocket for the interaction with both peptides. Since both peptide sequences are very different, this result indicates that reading domains can have dual specificities. Sub-nuclear localization studies of full-length PHF1 in human HEK293 cells revealed that it co-localizes with K27me3, but not with K36me3, and that this co-localization depends on the trimethyllysine binding pocket indicating that K27me3 is an in vivo target for the PHF1 Tudor domain. Our data suggest that PHF1 binds to H3tK27me3 in human chromatin, and H3t has a more general role in Polycomb regulation.