Journal
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
Volume 10, Issue -, Pages -Publisher
NATURE PUBLISHING GROUP
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-09309-4
Keywords
-
Categories
Funding
- National Research Fund
- Marie Curie Actions of the European Commission (FP7-COFUND)
- CIHR [FRN-125792]
- U.S. National Institutes of Health [R01CA218600, R01CA230854, R01GM122749, R01HD088626]
- AbbVie [1097737]
- Bayer Pharma AG
- Boehringer Ingelheim
- Canada Foundation for Innovation
- Eshelman Institute for Innovation
- Genome Canada through Ontario Genomics Institute [OGI055]
- Innovative Medicines Initiative (EU/EFPIA) [ULTRA-DD grant] [115766]
- Janssen
- Merck KGaA
- Darmstadt, Germany
- MSD
- Novartis Pharma AG
- Ontario Ministry of Research, Innovation and Science (MRIS)
- Pfizer
- Sao Paulo Research Foundation-FAPESP
- Takeda
- Wellcome Trust
Ask authors/readers for more resources
In embryonic stem cells, promoters of key lineage-specific differentiation genes are found in a bivalent state, having both activating H3K4me3 and repressive H3K27me3 histone marks, making them poised for transcription upon loss of H3K27me3. Whether cancer-initiating cells (C-ICs) have similar epigenetic mechanisms that prevent lineage commitment is unknown. Here we show that colorectal C-ICs (CC-ICs) are maintained in a stem-like state through a bivalent epigenetic mechanism. Disruption of the bivalent state through inhibition of the H3K27 methyltransferase EZH2, resulted in decreased self-renewal of patient-derived C-ICs. Epigenomic analyses revealed that the promoter of Indian Hedgehog (IHH), a canonical driver of normal colonocyte differentiation, exists in a bivalent chromatin state. Inhibition of EZH2 resulted in de-repression of IHH, decreased self-renewal, and increased sensitivity to chemotherapy in vivo. Our results reveal an epigenetic block to differentiation in CC-ICs and demonstrate the potential for epigenetic differentiation therapy of a solid tumour through EZH2 inhibition.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available