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Acetyl-CoA synthetase regulates histone acetylation and hippocampal memory
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Acetyl-CoA synthetase regulates histone acetylation and hippocampal memory

Philipp Mews, Greg Donahue, Adam M Drake, Vincent Luczak, Ted Abel and Shelley L Berger
Nature (London), Vol.546(7658), pp.381-386
06/15/2017
DOI: 10.1038/nature22405
PMCID: PMC5505514
PMID: 28562591

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Abstract

Metabolic production of acetyl coenzyme A (acetyl-CoA) is linked to histone acetylation and gene regulation, but the precise mechanisms of this process are largely unknown. Here we show that the metabolic enzyme acetyl-CoA synthetase 2 (ACSS2) directly regulates histone acetylation in neurons and spatial memory in mammals. In a neuronal cell culture model, ACSS2 increases in the nuclei of differentiating neurons and localizes to upregulated neuronal genes near sites of elevated histone acetylation. A decrease in ACSS2 lowers nuclear acetyl-CoA levels, histone acetylation, and responsive expression of the cohort of neuronal genes. In adult mice, attenuation of hippocampal ACSS2 expression impairs long-term spatial memory, a cognitive process that relies on histone acetylation. A decrease in ACSS2 in the hippocampus also leads to defective upregulation of memory-related neuronal genes that are pre-bound by ACSS2. These results reveal a connection between cellular metabolism, gene regulation, and neural plasticity and establish a link between acetyl-CoA generation 'on-site' at chromatin for histone acetylation and the transcription of key neuronal genes.
Cell Differentiation Chromatin - metabolism Up-Regulation Histones - chemistry Transcriptional Activation Neurons - cytology Neuronal Plasticity - genetics Cell Nucleus - metabolism Neuronal Plasticity - physiology Acetate-CoA Ligase - genetics Hippocampus - enzymology Neurons - metabolism Acetylation Cells, Cultured Acetyl Coenzyme A - metabolism Acetate-CoA Ligase - deficiency Memory Consolidation - physiology Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic Hippocampus - metabolism Animals Acetate-CoA Ligase - metabolism Chromatin - enzymology Mice Histones - metabolism Hippocampus - physiology Chromatin - genetics Memory - physiology

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