LncRNA Gas5 directs SUV39H2 to establish heterochromatin and maintain genome stability

While the SUV39H histone methyltransferases catalyze H3K9me3 deposition, their locus-specific targeting mechanisms remain unclear. Here, via RNA depletion or RNA-binding affinity mutation, we establish that RNA binding is indispensable for SUV39H2 recruitment to chromatin and H3K9me3 maintenance in mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs).

Through RNA immunoprecipitation sequencing (RIP-Seq) and functional validation, we identify the long non-coding RNA Gas5 as a specific SUV39H2 interactor. Depletion of Gas5 or disruption of the SUV39H2–RNA interaction leads to the loss of self-renewal capacity of ESCs, abolishes H3K9me3 enrichment, along with profound genomic instability, mitotic errors, and γH2AX foci accumulation. These findings reveal a critical lncRNA-dependent mechanism governing the SUV39H2–H3K9me3 axis, which directly couples RNA metabolism to the preservation of pluripotency and genome integrity in stem cells.