Genetic Insulator for Preventing Influence by Another Gene Promoter Susheng Gan University of Kentucky

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Genetic Insulator for Preventing Influence by Another Gene Promoter Susheng Gan University of Kentucky University of Kentucky UKnowledge Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Patents Plant and Soil Sciences 10-20-2009 Genetic Insulator for Preventing Influence by Another Gene Promoter Susheng Gan University of Kentucky Mingtang Xie Right click to open a feedback form in a new tab to let us know how this document benefits oy u. Follow this and additional works at: https://uknowledge.uky.edu/pss_patents Part of the Plant Sciences Commons Recommended Citation Gan, Susheng and Xie, Mingtang, "Genetic Insulator for Preventing Influence by Another Gene Promoter" (2009). Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Patents. 35. https://uknowledge.uky.edu/pss_patents/35 This Patent is brought to you for free and open access by the Plant and Soil Sciences at UKnowledge. It has been accepted for inclusion in Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Patents by an authorized administrator of UKnowledge. For more information, please contact [email protected]. US007605300B2 (12) United States Patent (10) Patent N0.: US 7,605,300 B2 Gan et al. (45) Date of Patent: Oct. 20, 2009 (54) GENETIC INSULATOR FOR PREVENTING Gan, S. Ph.D. Thesis; Molecular characterization and genetic INFLUENCE BY ANOTHER GENE manipulation of plant senescence (University of Wisconsin-Madi PROMOTER son, Madison, 1995).* Millar et al., The Plant Cell, vol. 11, pp. 825-838, May 1999. (75) Inventors: Susheng Gan, Lexington, KY (U S); NCBI, GenBank, AF129511, 2000. An G, “Binary Ti vectors for plant transformation and promoter Mingtang Xie, Burnaby (CA) analysis.” In Methods in Enzymology.‘ RecombinantDNA, R. Wu, and L. Grossman, eds, 292-305 (San Diego, Academic Press, 1987). (73) Assignee: University of Kentucky Research Bechtold N et al., “In Planta Agrobacterium-mediated gene transfer Foundation, Lexington, KY (U S) by in?ltration of adult Arabidopsis plants”, C R Acad Sci Paris 316, 1194-1199 (1993). ( * ) Notice: Subject to any disclaimer, the term of this Brown M et al., “lac repressor can regulate expression from a hybrid patent is extended or adjusted under 35 SV40 early promoter containing a lac operator in animal cells”, Cell USC 154(b) by 218 days. 49, 603-612 (1987). Gallic DR et al., “The 5‘-leader sequence of tobacco mosaic virus (21) Appl.No.: 11/328,226 RNA enhances the expression of foreign gene transcripts in vitro and in vivo”. Nucleic Acids Res 15, 3257-3273 (1987). (22) Filed: Jan. 10, 2006 Gan S. Ph.D. Thesis; Molecular characterization and genetic manipulation of plant senescence (University of Wisconsin-Madi (65) Prior Publication Data son, Madison, 1995). Hajdukiewicz P et al., “The small, versatile pPZP family of US 2006/0174370 A1 Aug. 3, 2006 Agrobacterium binary vectors for plant transformation”, Plant Mol Biol 25, 989-994 (1994). Related US. Application Data Holtorf S et al., “Comparison of different constitutive and inducible promoters for the overexpression of transgenes in Arabidopsis (62) Division of application No. 09/973,945, ?led on Oct. thaliana Plant Mol Biol 29, 637-646 (1995). 11, 2001, noW abandoned. Jefferson RA, “Assaying chimeric genes in plants: the GUS gene (60) Provisional application No. 60/241,735, ?led on Oct. fusion system”, Plant Mol Biol Rep 5, 387-405 (1987). 20, 2000. Sambrook J et al., Molecular Cloning.'A LaboratoryManual, Second edition (New York, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, 1989). (51) Int. Cl. Slomiany BA, “Extraction of nuclear proteins With increased DNA binding activity”, BioTechniques 28, 938-942 (2000). C12N 15/82 (2006.01) Mlynarova et a1. Reduced Position Effect in Mature Transgenic (52) US. Cl. .................................... .. 800/278 Plants Conferred by the Chicken LysoZyme Matrix-Associated (58) Field of Classi?cation Search ..................... .. None Region. The Plant Cell. Mar. 1994. vol. 6, pp. 417-426, see entire See application ?le for complete search history. document. (56) References Cited * cited by examiner U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS Primary ExamineriDavid H Kruse 5,610,053 A 3/1997 Chung et a1. (74) Attorney, Agent, or FirmiMcDermott Will & Emery 6,037,525 A 3/2000 Thompson et a1. LLP 6,040,185 A 3/2000 Dietrich et a1. 6,100,448 A 8/2000 Thompson et a1. (57) ABSTRACT 6,229,070 B1 5/2001 Shinmyo et a1. 6,388,170 B1* 5/2002 Gan et a1. ................. .. 800/278 A 16 bp polynucleotide sequence ofArabidopsis thaliana is a FOREIGN PATENT DOCUMENTS genetic insulator that can effectively isolate a trans gene from positional effects of neighboring gene activities in transgenic W0 WO 93/02187 2/1993 plant cells. OTHER PUBLICATIONS Millar et a1. (1999, The Plant Cell 11:825-838).* 4 Claims, 4 Drawing Sheets US. Patent 0a. 20, 2009 Sheet 1 of4 US 7,605,300 B2 Figure 1 4§_2\P 3158 _ 51 __> H MAS-terl Gus “l'l P358 NPTII 1») FB 44/ LB Insert 1- pGL429 2. pGL450 IE] 3. pGL419 2x Insulator P 4. pGL469 [24x Insulator sis-5. » }—'l. (is | MAS-ter H P353 NPTII 1+ 9 LB Insert 5- pGL443 2x Insulator 6. pGL446 US. Patent 0a. 20, 2009 Sheet 2 of4 US 7,605,300 B2 959“.m US. Patent 0a. 20, 2009 Sheet 3 of4 US 7,605,300 B2 Figure 3 A Nl29 L31 -++++++-NPS e3 CD 0 %ofCXinLan mA o O 12345678 US. Patent 0a. 20, 2009 Sheet 4 of4 US 7,605,300 B2 Figure4 A M29 5 ' cttctaGAATATATATATATTCgaaaaag3 ' Nlm 5- ------------ ——G ------------ --3' M1 5' ---- --Acc ------------------ --3' M2 5' ------- -—GCG --------------- --3' M3 5' ---------- -—CGCG ----------- "3' M4 5' ---------- --c -------------- --3 M5 5' ----------- ——G ------------- --3' M6 5' ------------ --c ------------ --3 M7 5' ------------- —-G ----------- --3 D E’ +100- 200 g 2 80- 150 E . X 60 100 l 0 1234567891012345678910 US 7,605,300 B2 1 2 GENETIC INSULATOR FOR PREVENTING having the sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO:9 INFLUENCE BY ANOTHER GENE (5'GAATATATATATATTC3') or a polynucleotide region hav PROMOTER ing a sequence that is a variant or fragment of the sequence set forth in SEQ ID N019, Wherein the polynucleotide region has RELATED APPLICATIONS a genetic insulator activity. In various embodiments, the poly nucleotide has a sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NOS: 1, 5, 9, This application is a divisional of application Ser. No. 10, 11, 12, 15, 16, 17, 18, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 30, 31, 09/973,945, ?led Oct. 11, 2001 noW abadoned, Which claims 33, 34, 35 or 36. In one embodiment, the plant genetic insu priority of US. Application No. 60/241,735, ?led Oct. 20, lator sequence contains only 16 base pair (bp), and is com 2000, the contents of Which are hereby incorporated by ref pletely distinct in siZe and function from the genetic insula erence. tors of fruit ?y and chicken. The invention provides a recombinant polynucleotide con FIELD OF THE INVENTION taining a plant genetic insulator comprising at least one copy of a polynucleotide having the sequence set forth in SEQ ID The invention relates to the ?eld of plant molecular biology NO:9 (5'GAATATATATATATTC3') or a polynucleotide and biotechnology. Speci?cally, the invention relates to poly region having a sequence that is a variant or fragment of the nucleotide sequences that can minimize or eliminate the posi sequence set forth in SEQ ID N019, Wherein the polynucle tion effect on a transgene in a plant. otide region has a genetic insulator activity. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The invention also provides a vector, comprising: a repli 20 cable vector; and the nucleic acid mentioned above that is Transgenic technology is Widely used in biotechnology. In inserted into the vector. Preferably, the vector is an expression eukaryotes, the temporal and spatial expression of transgenes vector, a plant vector, or a plant expression vector. The inven is regulated by transcription factors through their interaction tion also provides a host cell, in Which the vector is situated. With enhancer elements. HoWever, eukaryotic enhancer-pro The host cell may be a plant cell or a microorganism. moter interactions lack the speci?city for precise temporal 25 The invention further provides a transgenic plant contain and spatial patterns of transgenic expression. The expression ing the genetic insulator polynucleotide. The invention is also of a transgene can be affected by (a) the promoter of a select directed to a recombinant seed containing the genetic insula able marker gene that is closely linked With the transgene, tor polynucleotide. and/or (b) by chromosomal genes that ?ank the transgene, The invention provides a method for expressing a polypep Which is often referred to as the “position effect”. These 30 tide in an organism comprising: constructing a vector com effects are often not desirable, especially When tissue-spe prising the genetic insulator polynucleotide; inserting the ci?c, precisely controlled, or optimal transgene expression is vector into the organism, Wherein the genetic insulator Wanted. sequence is recombined into the organism; and alloWing the It is knoWn that a eukaryotic genome has organizational organism to express the polypeptide. In this method, the properties that rely on the ability of the chromosome to estab 35 polypeptide may be encoded on an insert in the vector. Alter lish autonomous functional units. The polynucleotide natively, the polypeptide may be encoded on the genome of sequences that separate these domains are called genetic insu organism. Further, the described nucleic acid may be inserted lator elements. These genetic insulator elements can buffer a immediately upstream of the nucleic acid encoding the transgene from position effects, so that an introduced trans polypeptide. Preferably, the organism is a plant. More pref gene can be expressed independent of its location in the 40 erably, the plant may be Arabidopsis or tobacco. chromosome. In addition, a genetic insulator may repress nonspeci?c interactions betWeen enhancers and promoters. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Thus, it could be possible to obtain precise gene expression by using an appropriate genetic insulator to shield the effects FIG.
Recommended publications
  • 422.Full.Pdf
    Downloaded from genome.cshlp.org on September 29, 2021 - Published by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press Research Dioxin receptor and SLUG transcription factors regulate the insulator activity of B1 SINE retrotransposons via an RNA polymerase switch Angel Carlos Roma´n,1 Francisco J. Gonza´lez-Rico,1 Eduardo Molto´,2,3 Henar Hernando,4 Ana Neto,5 Cristina Vicente-Garcia,2,3 Esteban Ballestar,4 Jose´ L. Go´mez-Skarmeta,5 Jana Vavrova-Anderson,6 Robert J. White,6,7 Lluı´s Montoliu,2,3 and Pedro M. Ferna´ndez-Salguero1,8 1Departamento de Bioquı´mica y Biologı´a Molecular, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Extremadura, 06071 Badajoz, Spain; 2Centro Nacional de Biotecnologı´a (CNB), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientı´ficas (CSIC), Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Campus de Cantoblanco, C/Darwin 3, 28049 Madrid, Spain; 3Centro de Investigacio´n Biome´dica en Red de Enfermedades Raras (CIBERER), ISCIII, Madrid, Spain; 4Chromatin and Disease Group, Cancer Epigenetics and Biology Programme, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), Barcelona 08907, Spain; 5Centro Andaluz de Biologı´a del Desarrollo, CSIC-Universidad Pablo de Olavide, 41013 Sevilla, Spain; 6College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow G12 8QQ, United Kingdom; 7Beatson Institute for Cancer Research, Glasgow, G61 1BD, United Kingdom Complex genomes utilize insulators and boundary elements to help define spatial and temporal gene expression patterns. We report that a genome-wide B1 SINE (Short Interspersed Nuclear Element) retrotransposon (B1-X35S) has potent in- trinsic insulator activity in cultured cells and live animals. This insulation is mediated by binding of the transcription factors dioxin receptor (AHR) and SLUG (SNAI2) to consensus elements present in the SINE.
    [Show full text]
  • Chromatin Insulators and Topological Domains: Adding New Dimensions to 3D Genome Architecture
    Genes 2015, 6, 790-811; doi:10.3390/genes6030790 OPEN ACCESS genes ISSN 2073-4425 www.mdpi.com/journal/genes Review Chromatin Insulators and Topological Domains: Adding New Dimensions to 3D Genome Architecture Navneet K. Matharu 1,* and Sajad H. Ahanger 2,* 1 Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, Institute for Human Genetics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA 2 Department of Ophthalmology, Lab for Retinal Cell Biology, University of Zurich, Wagistrasse 14, Zurich 8952, Switzerland * Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed; E-Mails: [email protected] (N.K.M.); [email protected] (S.H.A.). Academic Editor: Jessica Tyler Received: 8 June 2015 / Accepted: 20 August 2015 / Published: 1 September 2015 Abstract: The spatial organization of metazoan genomes has a direct influence on fundamental nuclear processes that include transcription, replication, and DNA repair. It is imperative to understand the mechanisms that shape the 3D organization of the eukaryotic genomes. Chromatin insulators have emerged as one of the central components of the genome organization tool-kit across species. Recent advancements in chromatin conformation capture technologies have provided important insights into the architectural role of insulators in genomic structuring. Insulators are involved in 3D genome organization at multiple spatial scales and are important for dynamic reorganization of chromatin structure during reprogramming and differentiation. In this review, we will discuss the classical view and our renewed understanding of insulators as global genome organizers. We will also discuss the plasticity of chromatin structure and its re-organization during pluripotency and differentiation and in situations of cellular stress.
    [Show full text]
  • Molecular Basis of the Function of Transcriptional Enhancers
    cells Review Molecular Basis of the Function of Transcriptional Enhancers 1,2, 1, 1,3, Airat N. Ibragimov y, Oleg V. Bylino y and Yulii V. Shidlovskii * 1 Laboratory of Gene Expression Regulation in Development, Institute of Gene Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 34/5 Vavilov St., 119334 Moscow, Russia; [email protected] (A.N.I.); [email protected] (O.V.B.) 2 Center for Precision Genome Editing and Genetic Technologies for Biomedicine, Institute of Gene Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 34/5 Vavilov St., 119334 Moscow, Russia 3 I.M. Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University, 8, bldg. 2 Trubetskaya St., 119048 Moscow, Russia * Correspondence: [email protected]; Tel.: +7-4991354096 These authors contributed equally to this study. y Received: 30 May 2020; Accepted: 3 July 2020; Published: 5 July 2020 Abstract: Transcriptional enhancers are major genomic elements that control gene activity in eukaryotes. Recent studies provided deeper insight into the temporal and spatial organization of transcription in the nucleus, the role of non-coding RNAs in the process, and the epigenetic control of gene expression. Thus, multiple molecular details of enhancer functioning were revealed. Here, we describe the recent data and models of molecular organization of enhancer-driven transcription. Keywords: enhancer; promoter; chromatin; transcriptional bursting; transcription factories; enhancer RNA; epigenetic marks 1. Introduction Gene transcription is precisely organized in time and space. The process requires the participation of hundreds of molecules, which form an extensive interaction network. Substantial progress was achieved recently in our understanding of the molecular processes that take place in the cell nucleus (e.g., see [1–9]).
    [Show full text]
  • A Subset of Drosophila Myc Sites Remain Associated with Mitotic Chromosomes Colocalized with Insulator Proteins
    ARTICLE Received 16 Aug 2012 | Accepted 7 Jan 2013 | Published 12 Feb 2013 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms2469 A subset of Drosophila Myc sites remain associated with mitotic chromosomes colocalized with insulator proteins Jingping Yang1, Elizabeth Sung1, Paul G. Donlin-Asp1 & Victor G. Corces1 Myc has been characterized as a transcription factor that activates expression of genes involved in pluripotency and cancer, and as a component of the replication complex. Here we find that Myc is present at promoters and enhancers of Drosophila melanogaster genes during interphase. Myc colocalizes with Orc2, which is part of the prereplication complex, during G1. As is the case in mammals, Myc associates preferentially with paused genes, suggesting that it may also be involved in the release of RNA polymerase II from the promoter-proximal pausing in Drosophila. Interestingly, about 40% of Myc sites present in interphase persists during mitosis. None of the Myc mitotic sites correspond to enhancers, and only some correspond to promoters. The rest of the mitotic Myc sites overlap with binding sites for multiple insulator proteins that are also maintained in mitosis. These results suggest alternative mechanisms to explain the role of Myc in pluripotency and cancer. 1 Department of Biology, Emory University, 1510 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA. Correspondence and requests for materials should be addressedto V.G.C. (email: [email protected]). NATURE COMMUNICATIONS | 4:1464 | DOI: 10.1038/ncomms2469 | www.nature.com/naturecommunications 1 & 2013 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved. ARTICLE NATURE COMMUNICATIONS | DOI: 10.1038/ncomms2469 yc has been extensively studied as an oncogene that has Results critical roles in cancer initiation and metastasis of many Myc is present at the promoters of paused genes.
    [Show full text]
  • Annotated Classic the Insulator Activity of CTCF
    Annotated Classic The Insulator Activity of CTCF Victor G. Corces1,* 1Department of Biology, Emory University, 1510 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA *Correspondence: [email protected] We are pleased to present a series of Annotated Classics celebrating 40 years of exciting biology in the pages of Cell. This install- ment revisits “The Protein CTCF Is Required for the Enhancer Blocking Activity of Vertebrate Insulators” by Dr. Gary Felsenfeld and his colleagues. Here, Dr. Victor G. Corces comments on the landmark discovery of the insulator activity of CTCF from Felsenfeld, who has pioneered the work decoding the function of CTCF in chromatin organization and transcriptional regulation. Each Annotated Classic offers a personal perspective on a groundbreaking Cell paper from a leader in the field with notes on what stood out at the time of first reading and retrospective comments regarding the longer term influence of the work. To see Victor G. Corces’ thoughts on different parts of the manuscript, just download the PDF and then hover over or double-click the highlighted text and comment boxes on the following pages. You can also view Corces’ annotation by opening the Comments navigation panel in Acrobat. Cell 158, August 14, 2014, 2014 ©2014 Elsevier Inc. Cell, Vol. 98, 387±396, August 6, 1999, Copyright 1999 by Cell Press The Protein CTCF Is Required for the Enhancer Blocking Activity of Vertebrate Insulators Adam C. Bell, Adam G. West, and Gary Felsenfeld* al., 1985). When scs elements are placed on either side Laboratory of Molecular Biology of a gene for eye color and introduced into Drosophila, National Institute of Diabetes and the resulting flies all have similar eye color independent Digestive and Kidney Diseases of the transgene's site of integration, an indication that National Institutes of Health scs has protected the reporter gene from both negative Bethesda, Maryland 20892-0540 and positive endogenous influences, or ªposition ef- fectsº (Kellum and Schedl, 1991, 1992).
    [Show full text]
  • Three-Dimensional Genome Architecture: Players and Mechanisms
    REVIEWS Three-dimensional genome architecture: players and mechanisms Ana Pombo1 and Niall Dillon2 Abstract | The different cell types of an organism share the same DNA, but during cell differentiation their genomes undergo diverse structural and organizational changes that affect gene expression and other cellular functions. These can range from large-scale folding of whole chromosomes or of smaller genomic regions, to the re-organization of local interactions between enhancers and promoters, mediated by the binding of transcription factors and chromatin looping. The higher-order organization of chromatin is also influenced by the specificity of the contacts that it makes with nuclear structures such as the lamina. Sophisticated methods for mapping chromatin contacts are generating genome-wide data that provide deep insights into the formation of chromatin interactions, and into their roles in the organization and function of the eukaryotic cell nucleus. Chromatin The 2-metre length of DNA in a mammalian cell is more than 30 years ago, it has become clear that this type immunoprecipitation organized into chromosomes, which are packaged and of genetic element can regulate gene trans­cription over A method in which chromatin folded through various mechanisms and occupy discrete large distances. Looping out of the DNA that separates bound by a protein is positions in the nucleus. The multiple levels of DNA promoters and distally located enhancers was proposed immunoprecipitated with an antibody against that protein, folding generate extensive contacts between different as a mechanism by which factors that are bound to to allow the extraction and genomic regions. These contacts are influenced by the enhancers can directly contact their target promoters analysis of the bound DNA proximity of DNA sequences to one another, by the fold- and influence the composition of transcription initiation by quantitative PCR or ing architecture of local and long-range chromatin con- complexes (FIG.
    [Show full text]
  • Boosting Gene Expression Through Enhanced Mrna Stability and Translational Efficiency
    bioRxiv preprint doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/787127; this version posted September 30, 2019. The copyright holder for this preprint (which was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder, who has granted bioRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity. It is made available under aCC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license. 1 Pseudomonas mRNA 2.0: Boosting Gene Expression Through 2 Enhanced mRNA Stability and Translational Efficiency. 3 Dário Neves1, Stefan Vos1, Lars M. Blank1, and Birgitta E. Ebert1,*† 4 1Institute of Applied Microbiology-iAMB, Aachen Biology and Biotechnology-ABBt, RWTH 5 Aachen University, Germany 6 † present address: Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, The University of 7 Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia 8 * Correspondence: 9 Dr. Birgitta E. Ebert 10 [email protected] 11 12 Abstract 13 High gene expression of enzymes partaking in recombinant production pathways is a desirable trait 14 among cell factories belonging to all different kingdoms of life. High enzyme abundance is generally 15 aimed for by utilizing strong promoters, which ramp up gene transcription and mRNA levels. 16 Increased protein abundance can alternatively be achieved by optimizing the expression on the post- 17 transcriptional level. Here, we evaluated protein synthesis with a previously proposed optimized gene 18 expression architecture, in which mRNA stability and translation initiation are modulated by genetic 19 parts such as self-cleaving ribozymes and a bicistronic design, which have initially been described to 20 support the standardization of gene expression. The optimized gene expression architecture was 21 tested in Pseudomonas taiwanensis VLB120, a promising, novel microbial cell factory.
    [Show full text]
  • A Drosophila Insulator Interacting Protein Suppresses Enhancer
    bioRxiv preprint doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/661041; this version posted June 5, 2019. The copyright holder for this preprint (which was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder. All rights reserved. No reuse allowed without permission. A Drosophila Insulator Interacting Protein Suppresses Enhancer-Blocking Function and Modulates Replication Timing Emily C. Stow, Ran An, Todd A. Schoborg†, Nastasya M. Davenport, James R. Simmons, and Mariano Labrador1 Department of Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA Authors affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA 1Author for correspondence ([email protected]) †Current address: Laboratory of Molecular Machines and Tissue Architecture, Cell Biology and Physiology CenterNational Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, National Institutes of HealthBethesdaUSA Running title: Insulator function and replication timing Keywords: Chromatin insulators, chromatin boundaries, gypsy, suppressor of Hairy wing, Su(Hw), HIPP1, Drosophila, DNA damage response, double strand breaks (DSBs), DNA replication, replication timing, Genome instability. 1 bioRxiv preprint doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/661041; this version posted June 5, 2019. The copyright holder for this preprint (which was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder. All rights reserved. No reuse allowed without permission. Abstract Insulators play important roles in genome structure and function in Drosophila and mammals. More than six different insulator proteins are required in Drosophila for normal genome function, whereas CTCF is the only identified protein contributing to insulator function in mammals. Interactions between a DNA binding insulator protein and its interacting partner proteins define the properties of each insulator site.
    [Show full text]
  • DNA Methylation Dysregulates and Silences the HLA-DQ Locus by Altering Chromatin Architecture
    Genes and Immunity (2011) 12, 291–299 & 2011 Macmillan Publishers Limited All rights reserved 1466-4879/11 www.nature.com/gene ORIGINAL ARTICLE DNA methylation dysregulates and silences the HLA-DQ locus by altering chromatin architecture P Majumder and JM Boss Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory University School Of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA The major histocompatibility complex class II (MHC-II) locus encodes a cluster of highly polymorphic genes HLA-DR, -DQ and -DP that are co-expressed in mature B lymphocytes. Two cell lines were established over 30 years ago from a patient diagnosed with acute lymphocytic leukemia. Laz221 represented the leukemic cells of the patient; whereas Laz388 represented the normal B cells of the patient. Although Laz388 expressed both HLA-DR and HLA-DQ surface and gene products, Laz221 expressed only HLA-DR genes. The discordant expression of HLA-DR and HLA-DQ genes was due to epigenetic silencing of the HLA-DQ region CCCTC transcription factor (CTCF)-binding insulators that separate the MHC-II sub-regions by DNA methylation. These epigenetic modifications resulted in the loss of binding of the insulator protein CTCF to the HLA-DQ flanking insulator regions and the MHC-II-specific transcription factors to the HLA-DQ promoter regions. These events led to the inability of the HLA-DQ promoter regions to interact with flanking insulators that control HLA-DQ expression. Inhibition of DNA methylation by treatment with 50-deoxyazacytidine reversed each of these changes and restored expression of the HLA-DQ locus. These results highlight the consequence of disrupting an insulator within the MHC-II region and may be a normal developmental mechanism or one used by tumor cells to escape immune surveillance.
    [Show full text]
  • The Insulator Protein CTCF Is Required for Correct Hox Gene Expression, but Not for Embryonic Development in Drosophila
    | COMMUNICATIONS The Insulator Protein CTCF Is Required for Correct Hox Gene Expression, but Not for Embryonic Development in Drosophila Maria Cristina Gambetta1,2 and Eileen E. M. Furlong2 European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Genome Biology Unit, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany ORCID IDs: 0000-0002-9450-3551 (M.C.G.); 0000-0002-9544-8339 (E.E.F.) ABSTRACT Insulator binding proteins (IBPs) play an important role in regulating gene expression by binding to specific DNA sites to facilitate appropriate gene regulation. There are several IBPs in Drosophila, each defined by their ability to insulate target gene promoters in transgenic assays from the activating or silencing effects of neighboring regulatory elements. Of these, only CCCTC- binding factor (CTCF) has an obvious ortholog in mammals. CTCF is essential for mammalian cell viability and is an important regulator of genome architecture. In flies, CTCF is both maternally deposited and zygotically expressed. Flies lacking zygotic CTCF die as young adults with homeotic defects, suggesting that specific Hox genes are misexpressed in inappropriate body segments. The lack of any major embryonic defects was assumed to be due to the maternal supply of CTCF protein, as maternally contributed factors are often sufficient to progress through much of embryogenesis. Here, we definitively determined the requirement of CTCF for developmental progression in Drosophila. We generated animals that completely lack both maternal and zygotic CTCF and found that, contrary to expectation, these mutants progress through embryogenesis and larval life. They develop to pharate adults, which fail to eclose from their pupal case. These mutants show exacerbated homeotic defects compared to zygotic mutants, misexpressing the Hox gene Abdominal-B outside of its normal expression domain early in development.
    [Show full text]
  • Two Insulators Are Not Better Than One
    © 2001 Nature Publishing Group http://structbio.nature.com news and views Two insulators are not better than one Fabien Mongelard and Victor G. Corces Chromatin insulators seem to control eukaryotic gene expression by regulating interactions between enhancers and promoters. Mounting evidence suggests that these sequences play a complex role in the regulation of transcription, perhaps mediated by changes in chromatin structure and nuclear organization. The expression of eukaryotic genes in spe- the largest collection of these sequences so structures, such as legs and antennae, are cific tissues and at particular times of far. The specialized chromatin structure changed into one another. These results development is determined by regulatory (scs and scs′ elements) flank one of the suggest that the Fab-7 insulator is required sequences called enhancers and silencers. heat shock protein 70 (hsp70) gene loci, for proper gene expression in order to Enhancers bind transcription factors, where they seem to delimit the region that avoid interference among the different reg- which then help initiate transcription of becomes transcriptionally active (or ulatory sequences of the Abd-B gene4–6. A the RNA at the promoter. Enhancers puffed) in response to heat shock. Other second example that illustrates the role of accomplish this independently of their Drosophila insulators include those found insulators in vivo is that of imprinting in distance and location with respect to the in the so-called gypsy retrovirus and the mice. Imprinting is an epigenetic trait gene. This flexibility in enhancer function Fab-7 and Fab-8 elements of the bithorax often seen as differences between paternal also gives these sequences the potential of complex, a complex containing three of and maternal inheritance.
    [Show full text]
  • An Insulator Element and Condensed Chromatin Region Separate the Chicken Β-Globin Locus from an Independently Regulated Erythroid-Specific Folate Receptor Gene
    The EMBO Journal Vol.18 No.14 pp.4035–4048, 1999 An insulator element and condensed chromatin region separate the chicken β-globin locus from an independently regulated erythroid-specific folate receptor gene Marie-Noe¨ lle Prioleau1, Pascale Nony2, (Stalder et al., 1980; Lawson et al., 1982; Jantzen et al., Melanie Simpson and Gary Felsenfeld3 1986; Stratling et al., 1986; Levy-Wilson and Fortier, 1989). Laboratory of Molecular Biology, National Institute of Diabetes and For a domain to be a truly independent unit, it should Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, contain all of the regulatory elements necessary for the Bethesda, MD 20892-0540, USA correct expression of the genes located within; some well 1 Present address: Laboratoire de Ge´ne´tique Mole´culaire, characterized domains do maintain a higher level of tissue- CNRS URA 1302, 46 rue d’Ulm, 75230 Paris Cedex 05, France 2Present address: Laboratoire de The´rapie Ge´nique, and stage-specific expression when integrated into the Baˆtiment Jean Monnet-Hoˆtel Dieu 30, boulevard Jean Monnet, genome than constructs containing only proximal cis- 44035 Nantes Cedex 1, France regulatory elements (Greaves et al., 1989; Bonifer et al., 3Corresponding author 1994; Mason et al., 1995; Dillon et al., 1997). DNA e-mail: [email protected] sequences that induce efficient gene expression independ- ently of the site of integration have been identified in a We have identified a folate receptor gene upstream of number of different domains. Usually they are marked by the chicken β-globin locus and separated from it by a a series of DNase I hypersensitive sites.
    [Show full text]