Oct4 dependence of chromatin structure within the extended Nanog locus in ES cells

Embryonic stem (ES) cells offer insight into early developmental fate decisions, and their controlled differentiation may yield vast regenerative potential. The molecular determinants supporting ES cell self-renewal are incompletely understood. The homeodomain proteins Nanog and Oct4 are essential for mouse ES cell self-renewal. Using a high-throughput approach, we discovered DNaseI hypersensitive sites and potential regulatory elements along a 160-kb region of the genome that includes GDF3, Dppa3, and Nanog. We analyzed gene expression, chromatin occupancy, and higher-order chromatin structure throughout this gene locus and found that expression of the reprogramming factor Oct4 is required to maintain its integrity.