Epigenetic regulation, which is characterized by reversible and heritable genetic alterations without changing DNA sequences, has recently been increasingly studied in diseases. Histone variant regulation is an essential component of epigenetic regulation. The substitution of canonical histones by histone variants profoundly alters the local chromatin structure and modulates DNA accessibility to regulatory factors, thereby exerting a pivotal influence on gene regulation and DNA damage repair. Histone H2A variants, mainly including H2A.Z, H2A.B, macroH2A, and H2A.X, are the most abundant identified variants among all histone variants with the greatest sequence diversity. Harboring varied chromatin occupancy and structures, histone H2A variants perform distinct functions in gene transcription and DNA damage repair. They are implicated in multiple pathophysiological mechanisms and the emergence of different illnesses. Cancer, embryonic development abnormalities, neurological diseases, metabolic diseases, and heart diseases have all been linked to histone H2A variant alterations. This review focuses on the functions of H2A histone variants in mammals, including H2A.Z, H2A.B, macroH2A, and H2A.X, and their current roles in various diseases.

ATP-dependent chromatin remodelers play a crucial role in modifying chromatin configuration by utilizing the energy of ATP hydrolysis. They are involved in various processes, including transcription, DNA replication, and maintaining genome stability. These remodeling remodelers usually form multi-subunit chromatin remodeling complexes in eukaryotes. In plants, chromatin remodeling complexes have diverse functions in regulating plant development and stress response. Recent studies have conducted extensive research on plant chromatin remodeling complexes. This review focuses on recent advances in the classification and composition of plant chromatin remodeling complexes, the protein-protein interactions within the complexes, their impact on chromatin configuration, and their interactions with chromatin modifications and transcription factors.

The Eaf6 protein, a conserved component of the NuA4 and NuA3 complexes in yeast and MOZ/MORF complexes in humans, plays crucial roles in transcriptional activation, gene regulation, and cell cycle control. Despite its significance in other organisms, the functional role of Eaf6 in entomopathogenic fungi (EPF) remained unexplored. Here, we investigate the function of BbEaf6, the Eaf6 homolog in the entomopathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana. We demonstrate that BbEaf6 is predominantly localized in nuclei, similar to its counterpart in other fungi. Deletion of BbEaf6 resulted in delayed conidiation, reduced conidial yield, and altered conidial properties. Transcriptomic analysis revealed dysregulation of the genes involved in asexual development and cell cycle progression in the ΔBbEaf6 mutant. Furthermore, the ΔBbEaf6 mutant exhibited decreased tolerance to various stresses, including ionic stress, cell wall perturbation, and DNA damage stress. Notably, the ΔBbEaf6 mutant displayed attenuated virulence in insect bioassays, accompanied by dysregulation of genes associated with cuticle penetration and haemocoel infection. Overall, our study elucidates the multifaceted role of BbEaf6 in stress response, development, and virulence in B. bassiana, providing valuable insights into the molecular mechanisms governing fungal pathogenesis and potential targets for pest management strategies.

Lactate, a metabolic byproduct, has gained recognition as a highly influential signaling molecule. Lactylation, an emerging form of post-translational modification derived from lactate, plays a crucial role in numerous cellular processes such as inflammation, embryonic development, tumor proliferation, and metabolism. However, the precise molecular mechanisms through which lactylation governs these biological functions in both physiological and pathological contexts remain elusive. Hence, it is imperative to provide a comprehensive overview of lactylation in order to elucidate its significance in biological processes and establish a foundation for forthcoming investigations. This review aims to succinctly outline the process of lactylation modification and the characterization of protein lactylation across diverse organisms. Additionally, A summary of the regulatory mechanisms of lactylation in cellular processes and specific diseases is presented. Finally, this review concludes by delineating existing research gaps in lactylation and proposing primary directions for future investigations.

Single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) is essential for various DNA-templated processes in both eukaryotes and prokaryotes. However, comprehensive characterizations of ssDNA still lag in plants compared to non-plant systems. Here, we conducted in situ S1-seq (ISS1-seq), with starting gDNA ranging from 5 µg to 250 ng, followed by comprehensive characterizations of ssDNA in rice (Oryza sativa L.). We found that ssDNA loci were substantially associated with a subset of non-B DNA structures and functional genomic loci. Subtypes of ssDNA loci had distinct epigenetic features. Importantly, ssDNA may act alone or partly coordinate with non-B DNA structures, functional genomic loci, or epigenetic marks to actively or repressively modulate gene transcription, which is genomic-region-dependent and associated with the distinct accumulation of RNA Pol II. Moreover, distinct types of ssDNA had differential impacts on the activities and evolution of TEs (especially common or conserved TEs) in the rice genome. Our study showcases an antibody-independent technique for characterizing non-B DNA structures or functional genomic loci in plants. It lays the groundwork and fills a crucial gap for further exploration of ssDNA, non-B DNA structures, or functional genomic loci, thereby advancing our understanding of their biology in plants.

Ubiquitin-fold modifier 1 (UFM1) is covalently conjugated to protein substrates via a cascade of enzymatic reactions, a process known as UFMylation. UFMylation orchestrates an array of vital biological functions, including maintaining endoplasmic reticulum (ER) homeostasis, facilitating protein biogenesis, promoting cellular differentiation, regulating DNA damage response, and participating in cancer-associated signaling pathways. UFMylation has rapidly evolved into one of the forefront research areas within the last few years, yet much remains to be uncovered. In this review, first, UFMylation and its cellular functions associated with diseases are briefly introduced. Then, we summarize the proteomic approaches for identifying UFMylation substrates and explore the impact of UFMylation on gene transcription, protein translation, and maintenance of ER homeostasis. Next, we highlight the intricate regulation between UFMylation and two protein degradation pathways, the ubiquitin-proteasome system and the autophagy-lysosome pathway, and explore the potential of UFMylation system as a drug target. Finally, we discuss emerging perspectives in the UFMylation field. This review may provide valuable insights for drug discovery targeting the UFMylation system.

Diisobutyl phthalate (DiBP), is widely chemical replacement for Dibutyl phthalate (DBP). Although DBP and DiBP have been detected in surface water worldwide, few studies to date have systematically assessed the risks of DBP and its alternatives to aquatic organisms. The present study compared DBP and DiBP for their individual and joint toxicity as well as thyroid hormone levels in zebrafish embryo. Transcripts of key genes related to the hypothalamic-pituitary-thyroid (HPT) axis were investigated in developing zebrafish larvae by application of real time polymerase chain reaction. The median half-lethal concentrations of DBP and DiBP to zebrafish at 96 h were 0.545 mg L-1 and 1.149 mg L-1, respectively. The joint toxic effect of DBP-DiBP (0.25-0.53 mg L-1) with the same ratio showed a synergistic effect. Thyroid hormones levels increased with exposure to 10 μg L-1 of DBP or 50 μg L-1 of DiBP, and exposure to both compounds significantly increased thyroid gland-specific transcription of thyroglobulin gene (tg), hyronine deiodinase (dio2), and transthyretin (ttr), indicating an adverse effect associated with the HPT axis. Molecular docking results indicated that DBP (-7.10 kcal/M and -7.53 kcal/M) and DiBP (-6.63 kcal/M and -7.42 kcal/M) had the same docking energy with thyroid hormone receptors. Our data facilities an understand of potential harmful effects of DBP and its alternative (DiBP).

Histone chaperones and histone variants play crucial roles in DNA replication, gene transcription, and DNA repair in eukaryotes. Histone chaperones reversibly promote nucleosome assembly and disassembly by incorporating or evicting histones and histone variants to modulate chromatin accessibility, thereby altering the chromatin states and modulating DNA-related biological processes. Cofactors assist histone chaperones to target specific chromatin regions to regulate the exchange of histones and histone variants. In this review, we summarize recent progress in the interplay between histone variants and chaperones in plants. We discuss the structural basis of chaperone-histone complexes and the mechanisms of their cooperation in regulating gene transcription and plant development.

Farmland soil organisms frequently encounter pesticide mixtures presented in their living environment. However, the underlying toxic mechanisms employed by soil animals to cope with such combined pollution have yet to be explored. This investigation aimed to reveal the changes in cellular and mRNA levels under chlorpyrifos (CPF) and lambda-cyhalothrin (LCT) co-exposures in earthworms (Eisenia fetida). Results exhibited that the combination of CPF and LCT triggered an acute synergistic influence on the animals. Most exposures resulted in significant alterations in the activities of total superoxide dismutase (T-SOD), copper/zinc superoxide dismutase (Cu/Zn-SOD), caspase 3, and carboxylesterase (CarE) compared to the basal level. Moreover, when exposed to chemical mixtures, the transcription levels of four genes [heat shock protein 70 (hsp70), gst, sod, and calreticulin (crt)] also displayed more pronounced changes compared with their individual exposures. These changes in determined parameters indicated the occurrence of oxidative stress, cell death, detoxification dysfunction, and endoplasmic reticulum damage after co-exposure to CPF and LCT in E. fetida. The comprehensive examination of mixture toxicities of CPF and LCT at different endpoints would help to understand the overall toxicity they cause to soil invertebrates. The augmented deleterious effect of these pesticides in a mixture suggested that mixture toxicity assessment was necessary for the safety evaluation and application of pesticide mixtures.

Class II histone deacetylases (HDACs) are important in regulation of gene transcription during T cell development. However, our understanding of their cell-specific functions is limited. In this study, we reveal that class IIa Hdac4 and Hdac7 (Hdac4/7) are selectively induced in transcription, guiding the lineage-specific differentiation of mouse T-helper 17 (Th17) cells from naive CD4+ T cells. Importantly, Hdac4/7 are functionally dispensable in other Th subtypes. Mechanistically, Hdac4 interacts with the transcription factor (TF) JunB, facilitating the transcriptional activation of Th17 signature genes such as Il17a/f. Conversely, Hdac7 collaborates with the TF Aiolos and Smrt/Ncor1-Hdac3 corepressors to repress transcription of Th17 negative regulators, including Il2, in Th17 cell differentiation. Inhibiting Hdac4/7 through pharmacological or genetic methods effectively mitigates Th17 cell-mediated intestinal inflammation in a colitis mouse model. Our study uncovers molecular mechanisms where HDAC4 and HDAC7 function distinctively yet cooperatively in regulating ordered gene transcription during Th17 cell differentiation. These findings suggest a potential therapeutic strategy of targeting HDAC4/7 for treating Th17-related inflammatory diseases, such as ulcerative colitis.