Description
Circadian and metabolic physiology are intricately intertwined, as illustrated by Rev-erb , a transcription factor (TF) that functions both as a core repressive component of the cell autonomous clock and as a regulator of metabolic genes. Here we show that Rev-erb modulates the clock and metabolism by different genomic mechanisms. Clock control requires Rev-erb to bind directly to the genome at its cognate sites, where it competes with activating ROR TFs. By contrast, Rev-erb regulates metabolic genes primarily by recruiting the HDAC3 corepressor to sites to which it is tethered by cell type-specific transcription factors. Thus, direct competition between Rev-erb and ROR TFs provides a universal mechanism for self-sustained control of molecular clock across all tissues, whereas Rev-erb utilizes lineage-determining factors to convey a tissue-specific epigenomic rhythm that regulates metabolism tailored to the specific need of that tissue.