Aid is a key regulator of myeloid/erythroid differentiation and DNA methylation in hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells

Blood. 2017 Mar 30;129(13):1779-1790. doi: 10.1182/blood-2016-06-721977. Epub 2017 Jan 11.

Abstract

Recent studies have reported that activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID) and ten-eleven-translocation (TET) family members regulate active DNA demethylation. Genetic alterations of TET2 occur in myeloid malignancies, and hematopoietic-specific loss of Tet2 induces aberrant hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) self-renewal/differentiation, implicating TET2 as a master regulator of normal and malignant hematopoiesis. Despite the functional link between AID and TET in epigenetic gene regulation, the role of AID loss in hematopoiesis and myeloid transformation remains to be investigated. Here, we show that Aid loss in mice leads to expansion of myeloid cells and reduced erythroid progenitors resulting in anemia, with dysregulated expression of Cebpa and Gata1, myeloid/erythroid lineage-specific transcription factors. Consistent with data in the murine context, silencing of AID in human bone marrow cells skews differentiation toward myelomonocytic lineage. However, in contrast to Tet2 loss, Aid loss does not contribute to enhanced HSC self-renewal or cooperate with Flt3-ITD to induce myeloid transformation. Genome-wide transcription and differential methylation analysis uncover the critical role of Aid as a key epigenetic regulator. These results indicate that AID and TET2 share common effects on myeloid and erythroid lineage differentiation, however, their role is nonredundant in regulating HSC self-renewal and in myeloid transformation.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Cell Differentiation*
  • Cell Lineage
  • Cell Self Renewal
  • Cell Transformation, Neoplastic
  • Cytidine Deaminase / genetics
  • Cytidine Deaminase / physiology*
  • DNA Methylation*
  • DNA-Binding Proteins / genetics
  • DNA-Binding Proteins / physiology
  • Dioxygenases
  • Erythroid Cells / cytology
  • Gene Silencing
  • Hematopoietic Stem Cells / cytology
  • Hematopoietic Stem Cells / metabolism*
  • Humans
  • Mice
  • Myeloid Cells / cytology
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins / genetics
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins / physiology

Substances

  • DNA-Binding Proteins
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins
  • Dioxygenases
  • TET2 protein, human
  • Tet2 protein, mouse
  • AICDA (activation-induced cytidine deaminase)
  • Cytidine Deaminase