Switching the in vivo specificity of a minimal Hox-responsive element

Development ◽  
1997 ◽  
Vol 124 (10) ◽  
pp. 2007-2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
S.K. Chan ◽  
H.D. Ryoo ◽  
A. Gould ◽  
R. Krumlauf ◽  
R.S. Mann

The homeodomain proteins encoded by the Hox complex genes do not bind DNA with high specificity. In vitro, Hox specificity can be increased by binding to DNA cooperatively with the homeodomain protein extradenticle or its vertebrate homologs, the pbx proteins (together, the PBC family). Here we show that a two basepair change in a Hox-PBC binding site switches the Hox-dependent expression pattern generated in vivo, from labial to Deformed. The change in vivo correlates with an altered Hox binding specificity in vitro. Further, we identify similar Deformed-PBC binding sites in the Deformed and Hoxb-4 genes and show that they generate Deformed or Hoxb-4 expression patterns in Drosophila and mouse embryos, respectively. These results suggest a model in which Hox-PBC binding sites play an instructive role in Hox specificity by promoting the formation of different Hox-PBC heterodimers in vivo. Thus, the choice of Hox partner, and therefore Hox target genes, depends on subtle differences between Hox-PBC binding sites.

1995 ◽  
Vol 15 (12) ◽  
pp. 7091-7097 ◽  
Author(s):  
B Peers ◽  
S Sharma ◽  
T Johnson ◽  
M Kamps ◽  
M Montminy

A number of homeodomain proteins have been shown to regulate cellular development by stimulating the transcription of specific target genes. In contrast to their distinct activities in vivo, however, most homeodomain proteins bind indiscriminately to potential target sites in vitro, suggesting the involvement of cofactors which specify target site selection. One such cofactor, termed extradenticle, has been shown to influence segmental morphogenesis in Drosophila melanogaster by binding cooperatively with certain homeodomain proteins to target regulatory elements. Here we demonstrate that STF-1, an orphan homeodomain protein required for pancreatic development in mammals, binds cooperatively to DNA with Pbx, the mammalian homolog of extradenticle. Cooperative binding with Pbx requires a pentapeptide motif (FPWMK) which is well conserved among a large subset of homeodomain proteins. The FPMWK motif is not sufficient to confer Pbx cooperativity on other homeodomain proteins, however; the N-terminal arm of the STF-1 homeodomain is also essential. As cooperative binding with Pbx occurs on only a subset of potential STF-1 target sites, our results suggest that Pbx may specify target gene selection in the developing pancreas by forming heterodimeric complexes with STF-1.


2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Junjie Cen ◽  
Yanping Liang ◽  
Yong Huang ◽  
Yihui Pan ◽  
Guannan Shu ◽  
...  

Abstract Background There is increasing evidence that circular RNAs (circRNAs) have significant regulatory roles in cancer development and progression; however, the expression patterns and biological functions of circRNAs in renal cell carcinoma (RCC) remain largely elusive. Method Bioinformatics methods were applied to screen for circRNAs differentially expressed in RCC. Analysis of online circRNAs microarray datasets and our own patient cohort indicated that circSDHC (hsa_circ_0015004) had a potential oncogenic role in RCC. Subsequently, circSDHC expression was measured in RCC tissues and cell lines by qPCR assay, and the prognostic value of circSDHC evaluated. Further, a series of functional in vitro and in vivo experiments were conducted to assess the effects of circSDHC on RCC proliferation and metastasis. RNA pull-down assay, luciferase reporter and fluorescent in situ hybridization assays were used to confirm the interactions between circSDHC, miR-127-3p and its target genes. Results Clinically, high circSDHC expression was correlated with advanced TNM stage and poor survival in patients with RCC. Further, circSDHC promoted tumor cell proliferation and invasion, both in vivo and in vitro. Analysis of the mechanism underlying the effects of circSDHC in RCC demonstrated that it binds competitively to miR-127-3p and prevents its suppression of a downstream gene, CDKN3, and the E2F1 pathway, thereby leading to RCC malignant progression. Furthermore, knockdown of circSDHC caused decreased CDKN3 expression and E2F1 pathway inhibition, which could be rescued by treatment with an miR-127-3p inhibitor. Conclusion Our data indicates, for the first time, an essential role for the circSDHC/miR-127-3p/CDKN3/E2F1 axis in RCC progression. Thus, circSDHC has potential to be a new therapeutic target in patients with RCC.


2003 ◽  
Vol 23 (24) ◽  
pp. 8934-8945 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sophie Magné ◽  
Sandrine Caron ◽  
Martine Charon ◽  
Marie-Christine Rouyez ◽  
Isabelle Dusanter-Fourt

ABSTRACT Signal transducer and activator of transcription 5 (STAT5) is activated by numerous cytokines that control blood cell development. STAT5 was also shown to actively participate in leukemogenesis. Among the target genes involved in cell growth, STAT5 had been shown to activate cyclin D1 gene expression. We now show that thrombopoietin-dependent activation of the cyclin D1 promoter depends on the integrity of a new bipartite proximal element that specifically binds STAT5A and -B transcription factors. We demonstrate that the stable recruitment of STAT5 to this element in vitro requires the integrity of an adjacent octamer element that constitutively binds the ubiquitous POU homeodomain protein Oct-1. We observe that cytokine-activated STAT5 and Oct-1 form a unique complex with the cyclin D1 promoter sequence. We find that STAT5 interacts with Oct-1 in vivo, following activation by different cytokines in various cellular contexts. This interaction involves a small motif in the carboxy-terminal region of STAT5 which, remarkably, is similar to an Oct-1 POU-interacting motif present in two well-known partners of Oct-1, namely, OBF-1/Bob and SNAP190. Our data offer new insights into the transcriptional regulation of the key cell cycle regulator cyclin D1 and emphasize the active roles of both STAT5 and Oct-1 in this process.


Development ◽  
1999 ◽  
Vol 126 (22) ◽  
pp. 5137-5148 ◽  
Author(s):  
H.D. Ryoo ◽  
T. Marty ◽  
F. Casares ◽  
M. Affolter ◽  
R.S. Mann

To regulate their target genes, the Hox proteins of Drosophila often bind to DNA as heterodimers with the homeodomain protein Extradenticle (EXD). For EXD to bind DNA, it must be in the nucleus, and its nuclear localization requires a third homeodomain protein, Homothorax (HTH). Here we show that a conserved N-terminal domain of HTH directly binds to EXD in vitro, and is sufficient to induce the nuclear localization of EXD in vivo. However, mutating a key DNA binding residue in the HTH homeodomain abolishes many of its in vivo functions. HTH binds to DNA as part of a HTH/Hox/EXD trimeric complex, and we show that this complex is essential for the activation of a natural Hox target enhancer. Using a dominant negative form of HTH we provide evidence that similar complexes are important for several Hox- and exd-mediated functions in vivo. These data suggest that Hox proteins often function as part of a multiprotein complex, composed of HTH, Hox, and EXD proteins, bound to DNA.


Blood ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 120 (19) ◽  
pp. 4018-4027 ◽  
Author(s):  
Constanze Breitinger ◽  
Emanuel Maethner ◽  
Maria-Paz Garcia-Cuellar ◽  
Robert K. Slany

Abstract HOX proteins are widely involved in hematopoietic development. These transcription factors combine a conserved DNA-binding homeobox with a divergent N-terminus that mediates interaction with variable cofactors. The resulting combinatorial diversity is thought to be responsible for mammalian HOX specificity. Contrasting this proposed mechanism for normal HOX function, here we demonstrate that, in the context of hematopoietic immortalization and leukemogenesis, individual HOX properties are governed almost exclusively by the homeodomain. Swap experiments between HOXA1 and HOXA9, 2 members of nonrelated paralog groups, revealed that gene expression patterns of HOX transformed cells in vitro are determined by the nature of the homeodomain. Similar results were seen in vivo during HOX-mediated leukemogenesis. An exchange of the homeodomains was sufficient to convert the slow, low-penetrance phenotype of HOXA1-induced leukemia to the aggressive fast-acting disease elicited by HOXA9 and vice versa. Mutation and deletion studies identified several subregions within the DNA binding domain responsible for paralog specificity. Previously defined binding sites for PBX cofactors within the exchangeable, nonhomeobox segment were dispensable for in vitro oncogenic HOX activity but affected in vivo disease development. The transcriptional activator domain shared by HOXA1 and HOXA9 at the very N-terminus proved essential for all transformation.


Endocrinology ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 154 (6) ◽  
pp. 2208-2221 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Schindler ◽  
Sünje Fischer ◽  
René Thieme ◽  
Bernd Fischer ◽  
Anne Navarrete Santos

Abstract The transcription factor cAMP responsive element-binding protein (CREB) and activating transcription factors (ATFs) are downstream components of the insulin/IGF cascade, playing crucial roles in maintaining cell viability and embryo survival. One of the CREB target genes is adiponectin, which acts synergistically with insulin. We have studied the CREB-ATF-adiponectin network in rabbit preimplantation development in vivo and in vitro. From the blastocyst stage onwards, CREB and ATF1, ATF3, and ATF4 are present with increasing expression for CREB, ATF1, and ATF3 during gastrulation and with a dominant expression in the embryoblast (EB). In vitro stimulation with insulin and IGF-I reduced CREB and ATF1 transcripts by approximately 50%, whereas CREB phosphorylation was increased. Activation of CREB was accompanied by subsequent reduction in adiponectin and adiponectin receptor (adipoR)1 expression. Under in vivo conditions of diabetes type 1, maternal adiponectin levels were up-regulated in serum and endometrium. Embryonic CREB expression was altered in a cell lineage-specific pattern. Although in EB cells CREB localization did not change, it was translocated from the nucleus into the cytosol in trophoblast (TB) cells. In TB, adiponectin expression was increased (diabetic 427.8 ± 59.3 pg/mL vs normoinsulinaemic 143.9 ± 26.5 pg/mL), whereas it was no longer measureable in the EB. Analysis of embryonic adipoRs showed an increased expression of adipoR1 and no changes in adipoR2 transcription. We conclude that the transcription factors CREB and ATFs vitally participate in embryo-maternal cross talk before implantation in a cell lineage-specific manner. Embryonic CREB/ATFs act as insulin/IGF sensors. Lack of insulin is compensated by a CREB-mediated adiponectin expression, which may maintain glucose uptake in blastocysts grown in diabetic mothers.


1995 ◽  
Vol 15 (7) ◽  
pp. 3786-3795 ◽  
Author(s):  
Q Lu ◽  
P S Knoepfler ◽  
J Scheele ◽  
D D Wright ◽  
M P Kamps

E2A-PBX1 is the oncogene produced at the t(1;19) chromosomal breakpoint of pediatric pre-B-cell leukemia. Expression of E2A-Pbx1 induces fibroblast transformation and myeloid and T-cell leukemia in mice and arrests differentiation of granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor-dependent myeloblasts in cultured marrow. Recently, the Drosophila melanogaster protein Exd, which is highly related to Pbx1, was shown to bind DNA cooperatively with the Drosophila homeodomain proteins Ubx and Abd-A. Here, we demonstrate that the normal Pbx1 homeodomain protein, as well as its oncogenic derivative, E2A-Pbx1, binds the DNA sequence ATCAATCAA cooperatively with the murine Hox-A5, Hox-B7, Hox-B8, and Hox-C8 homeodomain proteins, which are themselves known oncoproteins, as well as with the Hox-D4 homeodomain protein. Cooperative binding to ATCAATCAA required the homeodomain-dependent DNA-binding activities of both Pbx1 and the Hox partner. In cotransfection assays, Hox-B8 suppressed transactivation by E2A-Pbx1. These results suggest that (i) Pbx1 may participate in the normal regulation of Hox target gene transcription in vivo and therein contribute to aspects of anterior-posterior patterning and structural development in vertebrates, (ii) that E2A-Pbx1 could abrogate normal differentiation by altering the transcriptional regulation of Hox target genes in conjunction with Hox proteins, and (iii) that the oncogenic mechanism of certain Hox proteins may require their physical interaction with Pbx1 as a cooperating, DNA-binding partner.


Development ◽  
1997 ◽  
Vol 124 (13) ◽  
pp. 2527-2536 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Serrano ◽  
H.W. Brock ◽  
F. Maschat

In Drosophila, Engrailed is a nuclear regulatory protein with essential roles during embryonic development. Although Engrailed is a transcription factor, little progress has been achieved in identifying its target genes. We report here the identification of an effector gene, the beta3-tubulin gene, as a direct target of Engrailed. The cytological location of beta3-tubulin, 60C, is a strong site of Engrailed binding on polytene chromosomes. Immunostaining analysis of a transgenic line containing a P[beta3-tubulin-lacZ] construct shows an additional site of Engrailed binding at the location of the transgene. Molecular analysis allowed identification of several Engrailed binding sites, both in vitro and in vivo, within the first intron of the beta3-tubulin locus. Engrailed binding sites identified in vitro are active in larvae. Furthermore, expression of beta3-tubulin is derepressed in the ectoderm of engrailed mutant embryos. Repression of beta3-tubulin by Engrailed is also obtained when Engrailed is ectopically expressed in embryonic mesoderm. Finally, two different sets of Engrailed binding sites are shown to be involved in the early and late regulation of beta3-tubulin by Engrailed during embryogenesis.


1993 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 2354-2365
Author(s):  
K M Catron ◽  
N Iler ◽  
C Abate

Murine homeobox genes play a fundamental role in directing embryogenesis by controlling gene expression during development. The homeobox encodes a DNA binding domain (the homeodomain) which presumably mediates interactions of homeodomain proteins with specific DNA sites in the control regions of target genes. However, the bases for these selective DNA-protein interactions are not well defined. In this report, we have characterized the DNA binding specificities of three murine homeodomain proteins, Hox 7.1, Hox 1.5, and En-1. We have identified optimal DNA binding sites for each of these proteins by using a random oligonucleotide selection strategy. Comparison of the sequences of the selected binding sites predicted a common consensus site that contained the motif (C/G)TAATTG. The TAAT core was essential for DNA binding activity, and the nucleotides flanking this core directed binding specificity. Whereas variations in the nucleotides flanking the 5' side of the TAAT core produced modest alterations in binding activity for all three proteins, perturbations of the nucleotides directly 3' of the core distinguished the binding specificity of Hox 1.5 from those of Hox 7.1 and En-1. These differences in binding activity reflected differences in the dissociation rates rather than the equilibrium constants of the protein-DNA complexes. Differences in DNA binding specificities observed in vitro may contribute to selective interactions of homeodomain proteins with potential binding sites in the control regions of target genes.


2005 ◽  
Vol 33 (6) ◽  
pp. 1518-1521 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Yates ◽  
I. Chambers

Intrinsic regulators of the pluripotency of mouse ES (embryonic stem) cells include the homeodomain proteins Oct4 and the recently identified Nanog. When overexpressed, Nanog displays the unique attribute of robustly sustaining ES cell self-renewal in the absence of the otherwise requisite extracellular stimulation by LIF (leukaemia inhibitory factor) and BMP (bone morphogenetic protein). Here, we review our current understanding of the function of Nanog in pluripotent stem cells both in vitro and in vivo.


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