Important roles of reversible acetylation in the function of hematopoietic transcription factors

Hematopoiesis is a very complex process whose proper functioning requires the regulated action of a number of transcription factors. Histone acetyltransferases (HATs) and histone deacetylases (HDACs) play significant roles in the regulation of hematopoietic transcription factors activity. Transcription factors such as GATA-1, EKLF, NF-E2, GATA-1, PU.1 recruit HATs and HDACs to chromatin, leading to histone acetylation and deacetylation, that affect chromatin structure and result in gene expression changes. On the other hand, transcription factors themselves can be acetylated and deacetylated by HATs and HDACs, respectively. Consequently, some important functions of these transcription factors are influenced, including DNA binding, transcription activation, repressor activity and protein-protein interactions. The regulation of hematopoietic transcription factors activity by HATs and HDACs may serve as a good model for studying how tissue-specific and lineage-specific gene expression is controlled through acetylation/deacetylation of histone/nonhistone proteins.