Interaction of transcription factors Islet2 and Nr2f1b to control vascular patterning during zebrafish development

Many regulators controlling arterial identity are well described; however, transcription factors that promote vein identity and vascular patterning have remained largely unknown. We previously identified the transcription factors Islet2 (Isl2) and Nr2f1b required for specification of the vein and tip cell identity mediated by notch pathway in zebrafish. However, the interaction between Isl2 and Nr2f1b is not known. In this study, we report that Nr2f2 plays minor roles on vein and intersegmental vessels (ISV) growth and dissect the genetic interactions among the three transcription factors Isl2, Nr2f1b, and Nr2f2 using a combinatorial knockdown strategy. The double knockdown of isl2/nr2f1b, isl2/nr2f2, and nr2f1b/nr2f2 showed the enhanced defects in vasculature including less completed ISV, reduced veins, and ISV cells. We further tested the genetic relationship among these three transcription factors. We found isl2 can regulate the expression of nr2f1b and nr2f2, suggesting a model where Isl2 functions upstream of Nr2f1b and Nr2f2. We hypothsized that Isl2 and Nr2f1b can function together through cis-regulatory binding motifs. In-vitro luciferase assay results, we showed that Isl2 and Nr2f1b can cooperatively enhance gene expression. Moreover, co-immunoprecipitation results indicated that Isl2 and Nr2f1b interact physically. Together, we showed that the interaction of the Nr2f1b and Nr2f2 transcription factors in combination with the Islet2 play coordinated roles in the vascular development of zebrafish.