Oncogenic transcription factors instruct promoter-enhancer hubs in individual triple negative breast cancer cells | Science Advances

Sequencing-based mapping of ensemble pairwise interactions among regulatory elements support the existence of topological assemblies known as promoter-enhancer hubs or cliques in cancer. Yet, prevalence, regulators, and functions of promoter-enhancer hubs in individual cancer cells remain unclear. Here, we systematically integrated functional genomics, transcription factor screening, and optical mapping of promoter-enhancer interactions to identify key promoter-enhancer hubs, examine heterogeneity of their assembly, determine their regulators, and elucidate their role in gene expression control in individual triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) cells. Optical mapping of individual SOX9 and MYC alleles revealed the existence of frequent multiway interactions among promoters and enhancers within spatial hubs. Our single-allele studies further demonstrated that lineage-determining SOX9 and signaling-dependent NOTCH1 transcription factors compact MYC and SOX9 hubs. Together, our findings suggest that promoter-enhancer hubs are dynamic and heterogeneous topological assemblies, which are controlled by oncogenic transcription factors and facilitate subtype-restricted gene expression in cancer.