1. Academic Validation
  2. The ubiquitin-specific protease USP36 is a conserved histone H2B deubiquitinase

The ubiquitin-specific protease USP36 is a conserved histone H2B deubiquitinase

  • Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2018 Jan 15;495(3):2363-2368. doi: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2017.12.107.
Tiffany DeVine 1 Rosalie C Sears 1 Mu-Shui Dai 2
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 Department of Molecular and Medical Genetics, School of Medicine, The OHSU Knight Cancer Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, 97239, United States.
  • 2 Department of Molecular and Medical Genetics, School of Medicine, The OHSU Knight Cancer Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, 97239, United States. Electronic address: daim@ohsu.edu.
Abstract

Histone H2B monoubiquitination plays a critical role in the regulation of gene transcription. Deregulation of H2B monoubiquitination contributes to human pathologies, such as Cancer. Here we report that human USP36 is a novel H2Bub1 Deubiquitinase. We show that USP36 interacts with H2B and deubiquitinates H2Bub1 in cells and in vitro. Overexpression of USP36 markedly reduced the levels of H2Bub1 in cells. Using the p21 gene as a model, we demonstrate that depletion of USP36 increases H2Bub1 at the p21 locus, primarily within its gene body. Consistently, knockdown of USP36 induced the expression of p21 and inhibits cell proliferation. Together, our results reveal USP36 as a novel H2B Deubiquitinase and shed light on its additional functions in regulating gene expression.

Keywords

Deubiquitinating enzyme; H2B; H2Bub1; Histone; USP36.

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