Combinatorial Genetic Control of Rpd3S Through Histone H3K4 and H3K36 Methylation in Budding Yeast.

Much of euchromatin regulation occurs through reversible methylation of histone H3 lysine-4 and lysine-36 (H3K4me and H3K36me). Using the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, we previously found that levels of H3K4me modulated temperature sensitive alleles of the transcriptional elongation complex Spt6-Spn1 through an unknown H3K4me effector pathway. Here we identify the Rpd3S histone deacetylase complex as the H3K4me effector underlying these Spt6-Spn1 genetic interactions. Exploiting these Spt6-Spn1 genetic interactions, we show that H3K4me and H3K36me collaboratively impact Rpd3S function in an opposing manner. H3K36me is deposited by the histone methyltransferase Set2 and is known to promote Rpd3S function at RNA PolII transcribed open reading frames. Using genetic epistasis experiments, we find that mutations perturbing the Set2-H3K36me-Rpd3S pathway suppress the growth defects caused by temperature sensitive alleles of SPT6 and SPN1, illuminating that this pathway antagonizes Spt6-Spn1 Using these sensitive genetic assays, we also identify a role for H3K4me in antagonizing Rpd3S that functions through the Rpd3S subunit Rco1, which is known to bind H3 N-terminal tails in a manner that is prevented by H3K4me. Further genetic experiments reveal that the H3K4 and H3K36 demethylases JHD2 and RPH1 mediate this combinatorial control of Rpd3S. Finally, our studies also show that the Rpd3L complex, which acts at promoter-proximal regions of PolII transcribed genes, counters Rpd3S for genetic modulation of Spt6-Spn1, and that these two Rpd3 complexes balance the activities of each other. Our findings present the first evidence that H3K4me and H3K36me act combinatorially to control Rpd3S.

'The kind of mildly curious sort of science interested person like me': Science bloggers' practices relating to audience recruitment.

With at least 150 million professional and amateur blogs on the Internet, blogging offers a potentially powerful tool for engaging large and diverse audiences with science. This article investigates science blogging practices to uncover key trends, including bloggers' self-perceptions of their role. Interviews with seven of the most popular science bloggers revealed them to be driven by intrinsic personal motivations. Wishing to pursue their love of writing and share their passion for science, they produce content suitable for niche audiences of science enthusiasts, although they do not assume background scientific knowledge. A content analysis of 1000 blog posts and comparison with the most popular blogs on the Internet further confirmed this result and additionally identified key factors that affect science blog popularity, including update frequency, topic diversity and the inclusion of non-text elements (especially images and video).

Timing of transcriptional quiescence during gametogenesis is controlled by global histone H3K4 demethylation.

Gametes are among the most highly specialized cells produced during development. Although gametogenesis culminates in transcriptional quiescence in plants and animals, regulatory mechanisms controlling this are unknown. Here, we confirm that gamete differentiation in the single-celled yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae is accompanied by global transcriptional shutoff following the completion of meiosis. We show that Jhd2, a highly conserved JARID1-family histone H3K4 demethylase, activates protein-coding gene transcription in opposition to this programmed transcriptional shutoff, sustaining the period of productive transcription during spore differentiation. Moreover, using genome-wide nucleosome, H3K4me, and transcript mapping experiments, we demonstrate that JHD2 globally represses intergenic noncoding transcription during this period. The widespread transcriptional defects of JHD2 mutants are associated with precocious differentiation and the production of stress-sensitive spores, demonstrating that Jhd2 regulation of the global postmeiotic transcriptional program is critical for the production of healthy meiotic progeny.