Enhancing ENCODE Through a Transcription Factor Tagging Approach to ChIP-seq

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): We propose to use bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) recombineering to epitope tag 40 transcription factors per year for chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) followed by sequencing to map binding sites genome wide. A major hurdle for the ENCODE project is the availability of ChIP-grade antibodies for each factor to be analyzed. Epitope tagging of chromatin-associated proteins presents an alternative approach for ChIP, using the same epitope-specific antibody for each factor. Expressing epitope tagged factors from BACs ensures that the factors are expressed at near-physiological levels due to the presence of endogenous regulatory sequences that drive each tagged factor from its native local genomic context. We propose to analyze a diversity of transcription factors using this method, which we have already demonstrated for more than 20 nuclear receptor class proteins, a forkhead domain protein, Jun and Fos, and several other types of factors (Poser et al. 2008; Hua, Kittler and White 2009). The goal of this project is to integrate our approach with the ENCODE project, testing it for a wider diversity of transcription and chromatin-associated factors and scaling the approach to production levels necessary for ENCODE. The proposed project involves a formal collaboration between the White and Snyder labs, as well as integration with other funded ENCODE and human epigenome projects. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Using a BAC recombineering approach, we propose to systematically epitope tag transcription and chromatin associated factors for ChIP-seq to speed current large-scale mapping projects such as the Encyclopedia of DNA Elements (ENCODE) project by eliminating the laborious step of antibody production and testing. The technology presented here has the potential to facilitate the large-scale identification of the binding sites of mammalian transcription factors and other chromatin-binding proteins. This technology will also enable the ChIP analysis of proteins that are recalcitrant to ChIP grade antibody production and thus impractical to map using the conventional factor-specific antibody ChIP approach for mammalian cells.