BMB Reports  
Role of histone modification in chromatin-mediated transcriptional repression in protozoan parasite Trichomonas vaginalis
Min-Ji Song1,#, Mikyoung Kim1,#, Jieun Seo1,2, Heon-Woo Kwon1,2, Chang Hoon Yang1,2, Jung-Sik Joo1,2, Yong-Joon Cho3,4 & Hyoung-Pyo Kim1,2,*
1Department of Tropical Medicine, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 03722, 2Brain Korea 21 PLUS Project for Medical Science, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 03722, 3Department of Molecular Bioscience, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon 24341, 4Multidimensional Genomics Research Center, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon 24341, Korea
Correspondence to: *Tel: +82-2-2228-1842; Fax: +82-2-363- 8676; E-mail: kimhp@yuhs.ac
#These authors contributed equally to this work.
Received: November 7, 2024; Revised: November 24, 2024; Accepted: December 12, 2024; Published online: January 22, 2025.
© Korean Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. All rights reserved.

cc This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
ABSTRACT
Trichomonas vaginalis is an extracellular flagellated protozoan responsible for trichomoniasis, one of the most prevalent nonviral sexually transmitted infections. To persist in its host, T. vaginalis employs sophisticated gene regulation mechanisms to adapt to hostile environmental conditions. Although transcriptional regulation is crucial for this adaptation, the underlying molecular mechanisms remain poorly understood. Epigenetic regulation, particularly histone modifications, has emerged as a key modulator of gene expression. A previous study demonstrated that histone modifications, H3K4me3 and H3K27ac, promote active transcription. However, the complete extent of epigenetic regulation in T. vaginalis remains unclear. The present study extended these findings by exploring the repressive role of two additional histone H3 modifications, H3K9me3 and H3K27me3. Genome-wide analysis revealed that these modifications negatively correlated with gene expression, affecting protein-coding and transposable element genes (TEGs). These findings offer new insights into the dual role of histone modifications in activating and repressing gene expression and provide a more comprehensive understanding of epigenetic regulation in T. vaginalis. This expanded knowledge may inform the development of novel therapeutic strategies targeting the epigenetic machinery of T. vaginalis.
Keywords: Chromatin, Epigenetic regulation, Histone modifications, Transcriptional repression, Trichomonas vaginalis


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