Hyperdynamic plasticity of chromatin proteins in pluripotent embryonic stem cells

Differentiation of embryonic stem (ES) cells from a pluripotent to a committed state involves global changes in genome expression patterns. Gene activity is critically determined by chromatin structure and interactions of chromatin binding proteins. Here, we show that major architectural chromatin proteins are hyperdynamic and bind loosely to chromatin in ES cells. Upon differentiation, the hyperdynamic proteins become immobilized on chromatin. Hyperdynamic binding is a property of pluripotent cells, but not of undifferentiated cells that are already lineage committed. ES cells lacking the nucleosome assembly factor HirA exhibit elevated levels of unbound histones, and formation of embryoid bodies is accelerated. In contrast, ES cells, in which the dynamic exchange of H1 is restricted, display differentiation arrest. We suggest that hyperdynamic binding of structural chromatin proteins is a functionally important hallmark of pluripotent ES cells that contributes to the maintenance of plasticity in undifferentiated ES cells and to establishing higher-order chromatin structure.