The dual histone demethylase KDM7A promotes neural induction in early chick embryos

Neural induction is the initial event of nervous system development during which part of the ectoderm is specified to become the embryonic neural plate. The biological roles of histone modification enzymes in the neural induction of early embryos remain unclear. Here, we show that an evolutionarily conserved dual histone demethylase KDM7A (KIAA1718) is predominantly expressed in epiblast cells of the primitive streak in early chick embryos. Overexpression of KDM7A in chick embryos leads to expansion of the neural plate, whereas knockdown of the gene impairs formation of the neural plate. We also show that KDM7A regulates Fgf4 expression in the primitive streak and that co-electroporation of a chick Fgf4 expression vector with KDM7A siRNA rescues the neural induction defect in chick embryos. Taken together, these results reveal an important role for histone demethylases in the determination of neural fate, and they highlight the mechanistic complexity of neural induction in early embryos.