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Related Concept Videos

The Eukaryotic Promoter Region02:40

The Eukaryotic Promoter Region

The eukaryotic promoter region is a segment of DNA located upstream of a gene. It contains an RNA polymerase binding site, a transcription start site, and several cis-regulatory sequences.  The proximal promoter region is located in the vicinity of the gene and has cis-regulatory sequences and the core promoter. The core promoter is the binding site for RNA polymerase and is usually located between -35 and +35 nucleotides from the transcription start site. The distal promoter regions are...
The Eukaryotic Promoter Region02:40

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The eukaryotic promoter region is a segment of DNA located upstream of a gene. It contains an RNA polymerase binding site, a transcription start site, and several cis-regulatory sequences.  The proximal promoter region is located in the vicinity of the gene and has cis-regulatory sequences and the core promoter. The core promoter is the binding site for RNA polymerase and is usually located between -35 and +35 nucleotides from the transcription start site. The distal promoter regions are...
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Reporter Genes

Reporter genes are a type of protein-coding gene that are often tagged to a gene of interest. Once inside a target cell, reporter genes usually produce visually identifiable characteristics like fluorescence and luminescence when expressed along with the gene of interest. Thus, reporter genes “report” the presence or absence of genes of interest in an organism, determine the gene expression pattern, or track the physical location of a DNA segment or protein in the cell.
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Tissue-specific transcription factors contribute to diverse cellular functions in mammals. For example, the gene for beta globin, a major component of hemoglobin, is present in all cells of the body. However, it is only expressed in red blood cells because the transcription factors that can bind to the promoter sequences of the beta globin gene are only expressed in these cells. Tissue-specific transcription factors also ensure that mutations in these factors may impair only the function of...

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Related Experiment Video

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Imaging Analysis of Neuron to Glia Interaction in Microfluidic Culture Platform (MCP)-based Neuronal Axon and Glia Co-culture System
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GFAP promoter elements required for region-specific and astrocyte-specific expression.

Youngjin Lee1, Albee Messing, Mu Su

  • 1Department of Neurobiology and Civitan International Research Center, Evelyn F McKnight Brain Institute and Center for Glial Biology in Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294-0021, USA.

Glia
|February 2, 2008
PubMed
Summary

Researchers identified specific DNA regions in the glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) gene promoter that control its expression in astrocytes and neurons. These findings reveal insights into GFAP gene regulation and astrocyte heterogeneity.

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Published on: September 26, 2015

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Molecular Biology
  • Genetics

Background:

  • Glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) is a key intermediate filament protein in astrocytes, abundant cells in the vertebrate central nervous system (CNS).
  • GFAP expression is upregulated during CNS development and injury, making its transcriptional regulation a significant area of study.
  • Previous studies identified a 2.2 kb human GFAP promoter (gfa2) active in astrocytes CNS-wide, and a shorter 448 bp promoter (gfa28) with restricted CNS expression and activity in both neurons and astrocytes.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To identify the specific DNA regions responsible for the differential expression patterns observed between the gfa2 and gfa28 GFAP promoters.
  • To elucidate the regulatory elements governing astrocyte-specific and neuron-specific gene expression.
  • To develop novel GFAP promoter variants for gene targeting applications.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized transgenic mice to analyze the function of deleted DNA regions from the gfa2 promoter in creating the gfa28 promoter.
  • Investigated the role of specific DNA segments in conferring region-specific expression and neuronal silencing.
  • Generated and characterized new GFAP promoter constructs, including gfaABC(1)D and a variant gfaABC(1)(mC(1.1))D.

Main Results:

  • A 55 bp segment (bp -1488 to -1434) contains elements responsible for region-specific expression.
  • A 45 bp sequence (bp -1443 to -1399) is crucial for silencing GFAP expression in neurons.
  • A novel 681 bp GFAP promoter, gfaABC(1)D, demonstrated similar expression to gfa2 but with twofold higher activity.
  • A variant, gfaABC(1)(mC(1.1))D, enabled astrocyte-specific transgene expression in defined brain regions.

Conclusions:

  • Specific DNA sequences within the GFAP promoter dictate cell-type specificity and regional expression patterns in the CNS.
  • These findings highlight the heterogeneity of astrocytes and provide mechanisms for neuronal repression of GFAP.
  • The newly developed GFAP promoter variants, particularly gfaABC(1)D, offer improved tools for gene targeting in neuroscience research.