[Frontiers in Bioscience E4, 1556-1570, January 1, 2012]

Fibrosis: is it a coactivator disease?

Asish K Ghosh1, Douglas E Vaughan1

1Feinberg Cardiovascular Research Institute, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Abstract
2. Introduction
3. Matrix Protein Synthesis is positively regulated by ATp300
4. Cellular ATp300 is Essential for Matrix Protein Synthesis in Response to Profibrotic Signals: Loss-of-Function Analysis
5. Disruption of Smad-ATp300 interaction: significance in fibrosis therapy
6. Evidence for Potential Link of ATp300 with tissue fibrogenesis
7. Mechanisms of epigenetic regulation of matrix protein synthesis by HAT, HDAC and HDACi are distinct
8. Summary and perspective
9. Acknowledgements
10. References

1. ABSTRACT

Fibrosis is an abnormal fibroblast-activation-associated pathological manifestation in injured organs where excessive non-physiological synthesis and accumulation of extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins by activated/differentiated fibroblasts disrupts tissue homeostasis. Like other eukaryotic genes, expression of ECM protein genes not only depends on its gene sequences in the regulatory region but also influenced by non-genetic factors called epigenetic regulators including acetyltransferases, deacetylases, methyltransferases and microRNAs. The acetyltransferase p300 (ATp300), a transcriptional coactivator, is a major player in the epigenetic regulation of genes whose products are involved in cellular growth, proliferation, apoptosis and essential for embryonic development. ATp300 acetylates specific lysine residues in histones and transcription factors (KAT) and as a transcriptional coactivator it forms a bridge between upstream regulatory element binding protein complex and basal transcriptional machinery. Abnormal coactivator activity-associated diseases are known as coactivator diseases. Abnormalities in ATp300 activities in adults are associated with numerous diseases. Here, we review the significant roles of ATp300 in epigenetic regulation of collagen synthesis and deposition in extracellular spaces, matrix remodeling and tissue fibrogenesis. The present day understanding on the distinct role of acetyltransferases, deacetylases, and deacetylase inhibitors on epigenetic regulation of matrix remodeling and fibrosis has also been discussed.