Dppa3 Improves the Germline Competence of Pluripotent Stem Cells

Background Chimera formation and germline competence are critical features of mouse pluripotent stem cells (PSCs). However, the factors that contribute to germline competence in the chimeras remain to be understood.Methods To determine the role of Dppa3 in PSCs, we first constructed Dppa3 knockout (Dppa3 KO) and Dppa3 overexpression (Dppa3 OE) PSCs, respectively. Using Dppa3 KO and Dppa3 OE PSCs, we then investigated the role of Dppa3 in PSCs by evaluating the chimera generation, DNA methylation, and pluripotent state conversion.Results We show that Dppa3 plays an important role in chimera formation and germline competence of mouse PSCs. PSC lines with high expression of Dppa3 show high germline competence. In contrast, Dppa3 deficiency reduces chimera formation and abrogates the germline transmission capacity of PSCs. Molecularly, Dppa3 facilitates establishing global DNA hypomethylation in PSCs. High levels of Dppa3 in PSCs reduce the expression of Dnmt3a/b and impede Uhrf1-Dnmt1 complex binding to DNA replication forks, maintaining DNA hypomethylation. Additionally, Dppa3 facilitates two-cell-stage (2C) genes expression and promotes conversion to a 2C-like state.Conclusion These data show that Dppa3 is involved in maintaining DNA hypomethylation homeostasis and is required for high chimera formation and germline competence of PSCs.

Automated summary

Dppa3 is crucial for chimera formation and germline competence in mouse pluripotent stem cells (PSCs), acting through regulation of DNA methylation and maintaining DNA hypomethylation balance. PSCs with high Dppa3 expression exhibit increased germline competence, while Dppa3 deficiency reduces chimera formation and germline transmission capacity.