Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2016 Aug 15;143(16):2882-97.
doi: 10.1242/dev.128892.

ATP-dependent chromatin remodeling during mammalian development

Swetansu K Hota  1 , Benoit G Bruneau  2
Affiliations
Review

ATP-dependent chromatin remodeling during mammalian development

Swetansu K Hota et al. Development. .

Abstract

Precise gene expression ensures proper stem and progenitor cell differentiation, lineage commitment and organogenesis during mammalian development. ATP-dependent chromatin-remodeling complexes utilize the energy from ATP hydrolysis to reorganize chromatin and, hence, regulate gene expression. These complexes contain diverse subunits that together provide a multitude of functions, from early embryogenesis through cell differentiation and development into various adult tissues. Here, we review the functions of chromatin remodelers and their different subunits during mammalian development. We discuss the mechanisms by which chromatin remodelers function and highlight their specificities during mammalian cell differentiation and organogenesis.

Keywords: Chromatin remodeler; Chromatin remodeling; Differentiation; Gene expression; Transcription.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing or financial interests.

Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
The domain structures of SNF2 family proteins. The domain organization of the catalytic subunits of SWI/SNF, ISWI, CHD and INO80/SWR subfamilies of chromatin remodelers are shown. All of these subunits are SNF2 family proteins. They all contain an ATPase domain, which consists of DEXDc and HELICc domains, with each subfamily possessing additional domains. SWI/SNF proteins, for example, are defined by the presence of an N-terminal helicase-SANT (HSA) domain and a C-terminal bromodomain. These proteins also contain QLQ and SNF2 ATP-coupling (SnAC) domains, as well as two A-T hook motifs. By contrast, ISWI proteins harbor a C-terminal SANT domain as well as SANT-like ISWI (SLIDE) and HAND domains. They also contain AutoN and NegC regulatory domains. CHD proteins are defined by the presence of tandem N-terminal chromodomains, with some family members containing N-terminal plant homeodomain (PHD) domains. INO80R/SWR proteins notably contain a split ATPase domain, with a spacer between the DEXDc and HELICc domains.
Fig. 2.
Fig. 2.
The composition of chromatin-remodeling complexes. The subunit composition of some mammalian chromatin-remodeling complexes is shown: (A) BAF complex, (B) ISWI complexes, (C) the CHD-containing NuRD complex and (D) INO80/SWR complexes.
Fig. 3.
Fig. 3.
Roles of chromatin remodelers in early embryogenesis. Stages of early mammalian development are pictured, with mouse embryonic day (E) indicated below each pictured stage. Key demonstrated roles for specific chromatin-remodeling factors are positioned at relevant stages below the developmental timeline. Roles for BAF complex subunits are in black; ISWI/NURF subunits are in red; CHD proteins are in blue; INO80/SWR factors are in green.
Fig. 4.
Fig. 4.
Chromatin remodeler functions and transitions in neural development. Stages of mammalian neural development are pictured, with mouse embryonic day (E) indicated below each pictured stage. Key demonstrated roles for specific chromatin remodeling factors are positioned at relevant stages below the developmental timeline. Roles for BAF complex subunits are in black; ISWI/NURF subunits are in red; CHD proteins are in blue.
Fig. 5.
Fig. 5.
Roles for chromatin remodelers in heart development. Stages of mammalian heart development are pictured, with mouse embryonic day (E) indicated below each pictured stage. Key demonstrated roles for specific chromatin-remodeling factors are positioned at relevant stages below the developmental timeline. Roles for BAF complex subunits are in black; CHD proteins in blue. LA, left atrium; LV, left ventricle; RA, right atrium; RV, right ventricle.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Alajem A., Biran A., Harikumar A., Sailaja B. S., Aaronson Y., Livyatan I., Nissim-Rafinia M., Sommer A. G., Mostoslavsky G., Gerbasi V. R. et al. (2015). Differential association of chromatin proteins identifies BAF60a/SMARCD1 as a regulator of embryonic stem cell differentiation. Cell Rep. 10, 2019-2031. 10.1016/j.celrep.2015.02.064 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Albini S., Coutinho P., Malecova B., Giordani L., Savchenko A., Forcales S.-V. and Puri P. L. (2013). Epigenetic reprogramming of human embryonic stem cells into skeletal muscle cells and generation of contractile myospheres. Cell Rep. 3, 661-670. 10.1016/j.celrep.2013.02.012 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Albini S., Coutinho Toto P., Dall'Agnese A., Malecova B., Cenciarelli C., Felsani A., Caruso M., Bultman S. J. and Puri P. L. (2015). Brahma is required for cell cycle arrest and late muscle gene expression during skeletal myogenesis. EMBO Rep. 16, 1037-1050. 10.15252/embr.201540159 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Alexander J. M., Hota S. K., He D., Thomas S., Ho L., Pennacchio L. A. and Bruneau B. G. (2015). Brg1 modulates enhancer activation in mesoderm lineage commitment. Development 142, 1418-1430. 10.1242/dev.109496 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Alvarez-Saavedra M., De Repentigny Y., Lagali P. S., Raghu Ram E. V. S., Yan K., Hashem E., Ivanochko D., Huh M. S., Yang D., Mears A. J. et al. (2014). Snf2h-mediated chromatin organization and histone H1 dynamics govern cerebellar morphogenesis and neural maturation. Nat. Commun. 5, 4181 10.1038/ncomms5181 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms

LinkOut - more resources