The Arabidopsis LHP1 protein colocalizes with histone H3 Lys27 trimethylation

Polycomb proteins are required for maintenance of silent chromatin states via histone H3 Lys27 trimethylation ( H3K27me3) in animals, but homologs are not found in plant genomes. Using a DamID- chip method, we found that the Arabidopsis thaliana chromodomain- containing protein LHP1 colocalizes with H3K27me3 genome- wide. The LHP1 chromodomain also binds H3K27me3 with high affinity, suggesting that LHP1 has functions similar to those of Polycomb.