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Title: Impact of CAR Agonist Ligand TCPOBOP on Mouse Liver Chromatin Accessibility.

Authors: Lodato, Nicholas J; Rampersaud, Andy; Waxman, David J

Published In Toxicol Sci, (2018 07 01)

Abstract: Activation of the nuclear receptor and transcription factor CAR (Nr1i3) by its specific agonist ligand TCPOBOP (1, 4-bis[2-(3, 5-dichloropyridyloxy)]benzene) dysregulates hundreds of genes in mouse liver and is linked to male-biased hepatocarcinogenesis. To elucidate the genomic organization of CAR-induced gene responses, we investigated the distribution of TCPOBOP-responsive RefSeq coding and long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) genes across the megabase-scale topologically associating domains (TADs) that segment the genome, and which provide a structural framework that functionally constrains enhancer-promoter interactions. We show that a subset of TCPOBOP-responsive genes cluster within TADs, and that TCPOBOP-induced genes and TCPOBOP-repressed genes are often found in different TADs. Further, using DNase-seq and DNase hypersensitivity site (DHS) analysis, we identified several thousand genomic regions (ΔDHS) where short-term exposure to TCPOBOP induces localized changes (increases or decreases) in mouse liver chromatin accessibility, many of which cluster in TADs together with TCPOBOP-responsive genes. Sites of chromatin opening were highly enriched nearby genes induced by TCPOBOP and chromatin closing was highly enriched nearby genes repressed by TCPOBOP, consistent with TCPOBOP-responsive ΔDHS serving as enhancers and promoters that positively regulate CAR-responsive genes. Gene expression changes lagged behind chromatin opening or closing for a subset of TCPOBOP-responsive ΔDHS. ΔDHS that were specifically responsive to TCPOBOP in male liver were significantly enriched for genomic regions with a basal male bias in chromatin accessibility; however, the male-biased response of hepatocellular carcinoma-related genes to TCPOBOP was not associated with a correspondingly male-biased ΔDHS response. These studies elucidate the genome-wide organization of CAR-responsive genes and of the thousands of associated genomic sites where TCPOBOP exposure induces both rapid and persistent changes in chromatin accessibility.

PubMed ID: 29617930 Exiting the NIEHS site

MeSH Terms: Animals; Chromatin Assembly and Disassembly/drug effects*; Chromatin Assembly and Disassembly/genetics; Female; Gene Expression Regulation/drug effects; Ligands; Liver/drug effects*; Liver/metabolism; Male; Mice, Inbred Strains; Promoter Regions, Genetic; Pyridines/toxicity*; RNA, Long Noncoding/genetics; Receptors, Cytoplasmic and Nuclear/agonists*; Receptors, Cytoplasmic and Nuclear/genetics; Sex Factors

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