Region-specific generation and retention of acetylated cohesin shape the genome-wide pattern of sister chromatid cohesion.

ESCO2-dependent acetylation of SMC3 is broadly generated during S phase but is mostly lost after replication, while a late G2–retained fraction accumulates in H3K27me3-enriched domains.

• Why it matters: Sister chromatid cohesion requires ESCO2-mediated SMC3 acetylation, but how this modification is established and maintained genome-wide is not well defined.
• What they did: Using quantitative ChIP-seq in human cells synchronized through S phase, the study mapped ESCO2 chromatin binding and compared it with ESCO2- versus ESCO1-mediated SMC3 acetylation patterns.
• The result: ESCO2 bound broadly without discrete peaks and localized preferentially to transcriptionally inactive regions, and its acetylation was broadly distributed; post-replicative retention into late G2 was linked to H3K27me3-enriched domains, shaping cohesion architecture.

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