Roles of meiotic and mitotic cohesin in stem cell gene regulation and genome stability.

Meiotic cohesin complexes, including REC8 and STAG3, are expressed in embryonic stem cells and influence chromatin architecture and gene regulation.

• Why it matters: Understanding the roles of meiotic cohesin in stem cells addresses a gap in knowledge about chromosome organization and gene regulation beyond germline cells, with implications for genome stability.
• What they did: The study compares meiotic and mitotic cohesin in expression, composition, and regulatory functions in ESCs versus differentiated fibroblasts, analyzing their roles in enhancer-promoter communication and chromatin domain formation.
• The result: Findings suggest meiotic cohesin acts as a noncanonical regulator in pluripotent stem cells, supporting replication-fork protection and genome stability, thereby permeating the traditional chromosome organization boundary.