Thepreciseregulationofgeneexpressionisessentialfortheregulationofmammaliandevelopmentandphysiologytoensurepropergrowth,function,homeostasisandadaptationtochangingconditions.Generegulationisprimarilymediatedbysequencespecifictranscriptionfactors,whichlocalizeatcis-regulatoryenhancerelements1–3.Bindingoflineage-determiningtranscriptionfactorsfacilitateschromatinopeningandbindingofsignal-dependenttranscriptionfactors,includingnuclearreceptors4–10.Thisleadstotheintricateassemblyoftranscriptionalcomplexesthatregulategeneexpression,inpartthroughtherecruitmentoftranscriptioncoregulatorsthatfurthermodulatechromatinstructure,includingthroughthereversibleacetylationofhistoneproteinsbyhistoneacetyltransferases(HATs)andhistonedeacetylases(HDACs)11,12.HATactivityisanintrinsicpropertyoftranscriptioncoactivators,whichpromotegeneexpressionthroughthetransferofanacetylgroupfromacetylCoAtotheεamineofseverallysineresiduesontheaminoterminaltailsofhistones13–16.HDACsantagonizethefunctionsofHATsthroughthedeacetylationofhistonetailsandthusrepressgeneexpression.Numerousstudieshavedemonstratedthatprecisecontroloftheseopposingenzymaticfunctionsiscrucialfordevelopmentandphysiology17.Themammaliangenomeencodes11HDACisoformsthatmakeuptheHDACsuperfamily,whichexertbothspecificandsometimesoverlappingfunctionsinthenucleusandcytosol.ThefirstHDACtobeisolatedandcharacterizedwasHDAC1(refs18–21),andthegeneencodingitisthefoundingmemberofthe11highlyconservedmammaliangenesmakinguptheHDACfamily22.ThosesharingthehighestsequencehomologytoHDAC1arereferredtoasclassIHDACs,whichincludeHDAC1,HDAC2,HDAC3andHDAC8.TheclassIIHDACsincludeHDAC4,HDAC5,HDAC6,HDAC7,HDAC9andHDAC10.ClassIandclassIIHDACsallcontainaconserveddeacetylasedomainandrequirezincforenzymaticfunction19,althoughcatalyticactivityhasbeendifficulttodemonstrateforclassIIaHDACs(HDAC4,HDAC5,HDAC7andHDAC9)17,23.ThesingleclassIVHDACisHDAC11,whichdemonstratessequenceconservationwithclassIandclassIIHDACswithinthedeacetylasedo...