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Posterior fossa type A (PFA) ependymomas exhibit very low H3K27 methylation and express high levels of EZHIP (Enhancer of Zeste Homologs Inhibitory Protein, also termed CXORF67). Here we find that a conserved sequence in EZHIP is necessary and sufficient to inhibit PRC2 catalytic activity in vitro and in vivo. EZHIP directly contacts the active site of the EZH2 subunit in a mechanism similar to the H3 K27M oncohistone. Furthermore, expression of H3 K27M or EZHIP in cells promotes similar chromatin profiles: loss of broad H3K27me3 domains, but retention of H3K27me3 at CpG islands. We find that H3K27me3-mediated allosteric activation of PRC2 substantially increases the inhibition potential of EZHIP and H3 K27M, providing a mechanism to explain the observed loss of H3K27me3 spreading in tumors. Our data indicate that PFA ependymoma and DIPG are driven in part by the action of peptidyl PRC2 inhibitors, the K27M oncohistone and the EZHIP ‘oncohistone-mimic’, that dysregulate gene silencing to promote tumorigenesis., PFA tumours express high levels of EZHIP (also known as CXORF67). Here the authors find that EZHIP directly interacts with the active site of EZH2 and is a competitive inhibitor of PRC2 and that EZHIP gives rise to H3K27me3 genomic profile similar to the K27M oncohistone.

Lys-27-Met mutations in histone 3 genes (H3K27M) characterize a subgroup of deadly gliomas and decrease genome-wide H3K27 trimethylation. Here we use primary H3K27M tumor lines and isogenic CRISPR-edited controls to assess H3K27M effects in vitro and in vivo. We find that whereas H3K27me3 and H3K27me2 are normally deposited by PRC2 across broad regions, their deposition is severely reduced in H3.3K27M cells. H3K27me3 is unable to spread from large unmethylated CpG islands, while H3K27me2 can be deposited outside these PRC2 high-affinity sites but to levels corresponding to H3K27me3 deposition in wild-type cells. Our findings indicate that PRC2 recruitment and propagation on chromatin are seemingly unaffected by K27M, which mostly impairs spread of the repressive marks it catalyzes, especially H3K27me3. Genome-wide loss of H3K27me3 and me2 deposition has limited transcriptomic consequences, preferentially affecting lowly-expressed genes regulating neurogenesis. Removal of H3K27M restores H3K27me2/me3 spread, impairs cell proliferation, and completely abolishes their capacity to form tumors in mice., Lysine27-to-methionine mutations in histone H3 genes (H3K27M) occur in a subgroup of gliomas and decrease genome-wide H3K27 trimethylation. Here the authors utilise primary H3K27M tumour lines and isogenic CRISPR-edited controls and show that H3K27M induces defective chromatin spread of PRC2-mediated repressive H3K27me2/me3.