Polycombregulates circadian rhythms inDrosophilain clock neurons

Abstract

Circadian rhythms are essential physiological feature for most living organisms. Previous studies have shown that epigenetic regulation plays a crucial role. There is a knowledge gap in the chromatin state of some key clock neuron clusters. In this study, we show that circadian rhythm is affected by the epigenetic regulatorPolycomb(Pc) within theDrosophilaclock neurons. To investigate the molecular mechanisms underlying the roles ofPcin these clock neuron clusters, we use targeted DamID (TaDa) to identify genes significantly bound by Pc in the neurons marked byC929-Gal4(including l-LNvs cluster),R6-Gal4(including s-LNvs cluster),R18H11-Gal4(including DN1 cluster), andDVpdf-Gal4,pdf-Gal80(including LNds cluster). It shows that Pc binds to the genes involved in the circadian rhythm pathways, arguing a direct role forPcin regulating circadian rhythms through specific clock genes. This study shows the identification of Pc targets in the clock neuron clusters, providing potential resource for understanding the regulatory mechanisms of circadian rhythms by the PcG complex. Thus, this study provided an example for epigenetic regulation of adult behavior.