p27Kip1 regulates γ-globin production

Sickle cell disease (SCD) and β-thalassemia are devastating genetic disorders resulting from defects in the β-globin subunit of adult hemoglobin (HbA). Both disorders are ameliorated by the induction of γ-globin, a component of fetal hemoglobin (HbF). Therefore, the development of safe, effective, and widely available inducers of HbF is needed. Here, we discovered that slow cycling erythroid cells exhibit increased γ-globin expression. To understand the molecular basis of this, we screened all cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors (CDKIs) for their ability to induce HbF using CRISPR activation (CRISPRa). We found that overexpression of CDKN1B, which encodes p27Kip1 (but not overexpression of other CDKIs), induces γ-globin expression at the transcriptional level. CDKN1B mutants expressing proteins unable to bind/inhibit CDKs and/or cyclins revealed that γ-globin induction by p27Kip1 depends largely on the domains involved in its cell cycle function. Pharmacological inhibition and genetic reduction of CDK4/6 also results in increased HbF. In genetic rescue experiments, we show that p27Kip1 induces HbF by inhibiting CDK4/6, through a mechanism that is likely BCL11A and ZBTB7A independent. Furthermore, palbociclib, an oral CDK4/6 inhibitor, significantly increases HbF in a murine SCD model at doses that are well tolerated. Moreover, we show that HbF induction by hydroxyurea, a drug currently in use to treat SCD, may be mediated in part by CDK4/6 inhibition. Overall, our findings establish a causal relationship between CDK4/6 activity and γ-globin production and suggest that single or dual CDK4/6 inhibitors might be therapeutically beneficial for SCD and β-thalassemia.