Linc-YY1 promotes myogenic differentiation and muscle regeneration through an interaction with the transcription factor YY1

Little is known how lincRNAs are involved in skeletal myogenesis. Here we describe the discovery of Linc-YY1 from the promoter of the transcription factor (TF) Yin Yang 1 (YY1) gene. We demonstrate that Linc-YY1 is dynamically regulated during myogenesis in vitro and in vivo. Gain or loss of function of Linc-YY1 in C2C12 myoblasts or muscle satellite cells alters myogenic differentiation and in injured muscles has an impact on the course of regeneration. Linc-YY1 interacts with YY1 through its middle domain, to evict YY1/Polycomb repressive complex (PRC2) from target promoters, thus activating the gene expression in trans. In addition, Linc-YY1 also regulates PRC2-independent function of YY1. Finally, we identify a human Linc-YY1 orthologue with conserved function and show that many human and mouse TF genes are associated with lincRNAs that may modulate their activity. Altogether, we show that Linc-YY1 regulates skeletal myogenesis and uncover a previously unappreciated mechanism of gene regulation by lincRNA. Long intervening noncoding RNAs (lincRNAs) are an emerging class of molecular regulators with diverse functions. Here the authors identify Linc-YY1, a novel lincRNA transcribed from the noncoding region of the mouse YY1 gene, that binds to YY1 protein and thereby regulates skeletal muscle differentiation and regeneration.