Linker histone H1.0 and JUNB Interaction Maintains Lineage-Specific and Age-Dependent Chromatin Architecture to Safeguard Cell Identity [RNA-Seq]

This thesis focuses on identifying the molecular factors involved in this maintenance system and defining how they function as barriers that oppose cell fate reprogramming and protect cellular identity. More broadly, this work addresses a fundamental question in biology: how differentiated cells actively preserve their identity while resisting inappropriate lineage programs, and how aging erodes these mechanisms, contributing to loss of cell identity in aged cells.

In particular, this work examines how transcription factor barriers cooperate with chromatin regulators to maintain cell fate stability. In a previous study, JUNB was identified as a transcription factor barrier that restricts cell fate reprogramming through regulation of chromatin accessibility at both open and closed chromatin regions. Notably, transcription factors are not typically characterized for their ability to regulate closed chromatin states.