Direct Conversion of Fibroblasts to Neurons by Reprogramming PTB-Regulated MicroRNA Circuits

The induction of pluripotency or trans-differentiation of one cell type to another can be accomplished with cell-lineage-specific transcription factors. Here, we report that repression of a single RNA binding polypyrimidine-tract-binding (PTB) protein, which occurs during normal brain development via the action of miR-124, is sufficient to induce trans-differentiation of fibroblasts into functional neurons. Besides its traditional role in regulated splicing, we show that PTB has a previously undocumented function in the regulation of microRNA functions, suppressing or enhancing microRNA targeting by competitive binding on target mRNA or altering local RNA secondary structure. A key event during neuronal induction is the relief of PTB-mediated blockage of microRNA action on multiple components of the REST complex, thereby derepressing a large array of neuronal genes, including miR-124 and multiple neuronal-specific transcription factors, in nonneuronal cells. This converts a negative feedback loop to a positive one to elicit cellular reprogramming to the neuronal lineage. [Display omitted] ► Diminished PTB expression is sufficient to trans-differentiate fibroblasts to neurons ► PTB plays a key role in a regulatory loop to suppress neuronal-specific genes ► PTB regulates gene expression at both the splicing and RNA stability levels ► PTB modulates microRNA targeting by competition or switching RNA structure An RNA-binding protein, PTB, can orchestrate large-scale changes in gene expression, sufficient to drive conversion of a fibroblast to a neuron, in part by binding to 3′ UTRs of multiple mRNAs either impairing or promoting miRNA pairing.