Contact

  • Academic
    athurm@stanford.edu
    University - Student Department: BioPhysics Position: Graduate
    University - Student Department: School of Medicine Position: Graduate, Medicine

Additional Info

  • Mail Code: 6150

All Publications

  • Myeloid lncRNA LOUP Mediates Opposing Regulatory Effects of RUNX1 and RUNX1-ETO in t(8;21) AML. Blood Trinh, B. Q., Ummarino, S. n., Zhang, Y. n., Ebralidze, A. K., Bassal, M. A., Nguyen, T. M., Heller, G. n., Coffey, R. n., Tenen, D. E., van der Kouwe, E. n., Fabiani, E. n., Gurnari, C. n., Wu, C. S., Espinosa Angarica, V. n., Yang, H. n., Chen, S. n., Zhang, H. n., Thurm, A. R., Marchi, F. n., Levantini, E. n., Staber, P. B., Zhang, P. n., Voso, M. T., Pandolfi, P. P., Kobayashi, S. S., Chai, L. n., Di Ruscio, A. n., Tenen, D. G. 2021

    Abstract

    The mechanism underlying cell type-specific gene induction conferred by ubiquitous transcription factors as well as disruptions caused by their chimeric derivatives in leukemia is not well understood. Here we investigate whether RNAs coordinate with transcription factors to drive myeloid gene transcription. In an integrated genome-wide approach surveying for gene loci exhibiting concurrent RNA- and DNA-interactions with the broadly expressed transcription factor RUNX1, we identified the long noncoding RNA LOUP. This myeloid-specific and polyadenylated lncRNA induces myeloid differentiation and inhibits cell growth, acting as a transcriptional inducer of the myeloid master regulator PU.1. Mechanistically, LOUP recruits RUNX1 to both the PU.1 enhancer and the promoter, leading to the formation of an active chromatin loop. In t(8;21) acute myeloid leukemia, wherein RUNX1 is fused to ETO, the resulting oncogenic fusion protein RUNX1-ETO limits chromatin accessibility at the LOUP locus, causing inhibition of LOUP and PU.1 expression. These findings highlight the important role of the interplay between cell type-specific RNAs and transcription factors as well as their oncogenic derivatives in modulating lineage-gene activation and raise the possibility that RNA regulators of transcription factors represent alternative targets for therapeutic development.

    View details for DOI 10.1182/blood.2020007920

    View details for PubMedID 33971010