Differentiation of certain cell types is followed by a downregulation of PARP1 expression. We show that the reduction in the abundance of PARP1 in hematopoietic progenitor cells and monocytes is tightly controlled by the cell cycle. The differentiation-associated cell cycle exit induces E2F1 replacement with E2F4 at the PARP1 promoter and the assembly of an E2F4-RBL2-HDAC1-BRM(SWI/SNF) repressor complex which deacetylates nucleosomes and compacts chromatin. In G1 arrested cells, PARP1 transcription is reduced by the recruitment of E2F1-RB1-HDAC1-EZH2(PRC2)-BRM/BRG1(SWI/SNF), which additionally trimethylates H3K27 and causes an even higher increase in nucleosome density. The re-establishment of an active chromatin structure by treating post-mitotic monocytes with the HDAC inhibitor and G1 arrested cells with a combination of HDAC and EZH2 inhibitors restores PARP1 expression completely but does not affect the interaction between the components of the repressor complex with chromatin. This suggests that RB1 and RBL2, as well as PRC2, SWI/SNF and HDAC1, do not interfere with the transcription machinery. Interestingly, reinstatement of PARP1 expression by the silencing of RBL2 or by the inhibition of HDACs in monocytes and by transfection with the PARP1 expression vector in differentiated THP-1 cells substantially increased transcription of pluripotency stem cell factors such as POU5F1, SOX2 and NANOG.Although PARP1 is involved in the regulation of numerous intracellular processes such as DNA repair, gene transcription, signalling or metabolism, the differentiation of certain cell types is associated with downregulation of PARP1 transcription 1,2 . Decreased abundance of PARP1 also occurs in human monocytes derived from hematopoietic progenitor and stem cells (HSPCs), which belong to a group of multipotent cells capable of self-renewal and, upon stimulation, of giving rise to a wide range of blood cells. Lineage commitment in HPSC caused by cytokines or cell-cell signalling, involves the inhibition of cell cycle progression, repression of HPSC specific transcription factors and induction of lineage-specific expression of genes involved in cell fate. For example, PU.1 (also known as SPI-1) acts in monocytes/macrophages as a lineage-determining transcription factor 3 . Neither the mechanism nor the physiological significance of PARP1 repression in determining monocyte phenotype, function or differentiation has been documented. The low level of this enzyme has been shown to sensitise human monocytes to oxidative stress, while in myotubes it served as a protective mechanism against oxidative stress, helping with maintaining the cellular functions of skeletal muscles 4,5 . According to recent findings PARP1 repression favours commitment and differentiation of some cell types. In differentiating osteoclasts,