Dynamics of epigenetic regulation at the single-cell level

TLDR

Epigenetic modifications govern transcriptional memory, and quantitative studies aim to characterize their dynamic properties. Single‑cell time‑lapse microscopy measured the effects of DNA methylation and histone deacetylation on transcription. Silencing occurs as a stochastic all‑or‑none event, with graded transcriptional changes arising from shifts in the proportion of responsive cells, and the duration of chromatin regulator recruitment controls the silenced fraction, leading distinct modifiers to generate varied epigenetic memory profiles. Science, this issue p.

Abstract

Quantitative analysis of epigenetic memory To explore quantitative and dynamic properties of transcriptional regulation by epigenetic modifications, Bintu et al. monitored a transcriptional reporter gene carried on a human artificial chromosome in Chinese hamster ovary cells (see the Perspective by Keung and Khalil). They measured effects of DNA methylation and histone modifications by methylation or deacetylation in single cells using time-lapse microscopy. Silencing was an all-or-none, stochastic event, so graded adjustments to transcription occurred from changes in the proportion of cells that responded. Furthermore, the duration of recruitment of the chromatin regulators determined the fraction of cells that were silenced. Thus, distinct modifiers can produce different characteristics of epigenetic memory. Science , this issue p. 720 ; see also p. 661