Cell Reports (Jan 2017)
Testis-Specific Histone Variant H3t Gene Is Essential for Entry into Spermatogenesis
- Jun Ueda,
- Akihito Harada,
- Takashi Urahama,
- Shinichi Machida,
- Kazumitsu Maehara,
- Masashi Hada,
- Yoshinori Makino,
- Jumpei Nogami,
- Naoki Horikoshi,
- Akihisa Osakabe,
- Hiroyuki Taguchi,
- Hiroki Tanaka,
- Hiroaki Tachiwana,
- Tatsuma Yao,
- Minami Yamada,
- Takashi Iwamoto,
- Ayako Isotani,
- Masahito Ikawa,
- Taro Tachibana,
- Yuki Okada,
- Hiroshi Kimura,
- Yasuyuki Ohkawa,
- Hitoshi Kurumizaka,
- Kazuo Yamagata
Affiliations
- Jun Ueda
- Center for Education in Laboratory Animal Research, Chubu University, Kasugai, Aichi 487-8501, Japan
- Akihito Harada
- Division of Transcriptomics, Medical Institute of Bioregulation, Kyushu University, Fukuoka 812-8582, Japan
- Takashi Urahama
- Laboratory of Structural Biology, Graduate School of Advanced Science & Engineering, Waseda University, Tokyo 162-8480, Japan
- Shinichi Machida
- Laboratory of Structural Biology, Graduate School of Advanced Science & Engineering, Waseda University, Tokyo 162-8480, Japan
- Kazumitsu Maehara
- Division of Transcriptomics, Medical Institute of Bioregulation, Kyushu University, Fukuoka 812-8582, Japan
- Masashi Hada
- Laboratory of Pathology and Development, Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences, University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0032, Japan
- Yoshinori Makino
- Laboratory of Pathology and Development, Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences, University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0032, Japan
- Jumpei Nogami
- Division of Transcriptomics, Medical Institute of Bioregulation, Kyushu University, Fukuoka 812-8582, Japan
- Naoki Horikoshi
- Laboratory of Structural Biology, Graduate School of Advanced Science & Engineering, Waseda University, Tokyo 162-8480, Japan
- Akihisa Osakabe
- Laboratory of Structural Biology, Graduate School of Advanced Science & Engineering, Waseda University, Tokyo 162-8480, Japan
- Hiroyuki Taguchi
- Laboratory of Structural Biology, Graduate School of Advanced Science & Engineering, Waseda University, Tokyo 162-8480, Japan
- Hiroki Tanaka
- Laboratory of Structural Biology, Graduate School of Advanced Science & Engineering, Waseda University, Tokyo 162-8480, Japan
- Hiroaki Tachiwana
- Laboratory of Structural Biology, Graduate School of Advanced Science & Engineering, Waseda University, Tokyo 162-8480, Japan
- Tatsuma Yao
- Research and Development Center, Fuso Pharmaceutical Industries, Ltd., Osaka 536-8523, Japan
- Minami Yamada
- Center for Education in Laboratory Animal Research, Chubu University, Kasugai, Aichi 487-8501, Japan
- Takashi Iwamoto
- Center for Education in Laboratory Animal Research, Chubu University, Kasugai, Aichi 487-8501, Japan
- Ayako Isotani
- Center for Genetic Analysis of Biological Responses, Research Institute for Microbial Diseases, Osaka University, 3-1 Yamadaoka, Suita 565-0871, Japan
- Masahito Ikawa
- Center for Genetic Analysis of Biological Responses, Research Institute for Microbial Diseases, Osaka University, 3-1 Yamadaoka, Suita 565-0871, Japan
- Taro Tachibana
- Department of Bioengineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka City University, Osaka 558-8585, Japan
- Yuki Okada
- Laboratory of Pathology and Development, Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences, University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0032, Japan
- Hiroshi Kimura
- Graduate School of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, 4259 Nagatsuta-cho, Midori-ku, Yokohama 226-8501, Japan
- Yasuyuki Ohkawa
- Division of Transcriptomics, Medical Institute of Bioregulation, Kyushu University, Fukuoka 812-8582, Japan
- Hitoshi Kurumizaka
- Laboratory of Structural Biology, Graduate School of Advanced Science & Engineering, Waseda University, Tokyo 162-8480, Japan
- Kazuo Yamagata
- Center for Genetic Analysis of Biological Responses, Research Institute for Microbial Diseases, Osaka University, 3-1 Yamadaoka, Suita 565-0871, Japan
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2016.12.065
- Journal volume & issue
-
Vol. 18,
no. 3
pp. 593 – 600
Abstract
Cellular differentiation is associated with dynamic chromatin remodeling in establishing a cell-type-specific epigenomic landscape. Here, we find that mouse testis-specific and replication-dependent histone H3 variant H3t is essential for very early stages of spermatogenesis. H3t gene deficiency leads to azoospermia because of the loss of haploid germ cells. When differentiating spermatogonia emerge in normal spermatogenesis, H3t appears and replaces the canonical H3 proteins. Structural and biochemical analyses reveal that H3t-containing nucleosomes are more flexible than the canonical nucleosomes. Thus, by incorporating H3t into the genome during spermatogonial differentiation, male germ cells are able to enter meiosis and beyond.
Keywords
- histone variant
- spermatogenesis
- nucleosome
- chromatin
- crystal structure
- epigenetics
- testes
- meiosis
- spermatogonial differentiation
- spermatozoa
