Artificially designed promoters: understanding the role of spatial features and canonical binding sites in transcription.
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Baumann M, Höppner MP, Meier M, Pontiller J, Ernst W, Grabherr R, Mauceli E, Grabherr MG
Bioeng Bugs 3 (2) 120-123 [2012-03-01; online 2012-03-01]
The promoter is a key element in gene transcription and regulation. We previously reported that artificial sequences rich in the dinucleotide CpG are sufficient to drive expression in vitro in mammalian cell lines, without requiring canonical binding sites for transcription factor proteins. Here, we report that introducing a promoter organization that alternates in CpGs and regions rich in A and T further increases expression strength, as well as how insertion of specific binding sites makes such sequences respond to induced levels of the transcription factor NFκB. Our findings further contribute to the mechanistic understanding of promoters, as well as how these sequences might be shaped by evolutionary pressure in living organisms.
PubMed 22095054
DOI 10.4161/bbug.18530
Crossref 10.4161/bbug.18530
pii: 18530
pmc: PMC3357332