Inositol pyrophosphates regulate JMJD2C-dependent histone demethylation

Epigenetic modifications of chromatin represent a fundamental mechanism by which eukaryotic cells adapt their transcriptional response to developmental and environmental cues. Although an increasing number of molecules have been linked to epigenetic changes, the intracellular pathways that lead to their activation/repression have just begun to be characterized. Here, we demonstrate that inositol hexakisphosphate kinase 1 (IP(6)K1), the enzyme responsible for the synthesis of the high-energy inositol pyrophosphates (IP7), is associated with chromatin and interacts with Jumonji domain containing 2C (JMJD2C), a recently identified histone lysine demethylase. Reducing IP(6)K1 levels by RNAi or using mouse embryonic fibroblasts derived from ip(6)k1(-/-) knockout mice results in a decreased IP7 concentration that epigenetically translates to reduced levels of trimethyl-histone H3 lysine 9 (H3K9me3) and increased levels of acetyl-H3K9. Conversely, expression of IP(6)K1 induces JMJD2C dissociation from chromatin and increases H3K9me3 levels, which depend on IP(6)K1 catalytic activity. Importantly, these effects lead to changes in JMJD2C-target gene transcription. Our findings demonstrate that inositol pyrophosphate signaling influences nuclear functions by regulating histone modifications.