Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 14, 2026

Isolation and Cultivation of Neural Progenitors Followed by Chromatin-Immunoprecipitation of Histone 3 Lysine 79 Dimethylation Mark
Published on: January 26, 2018
Roles of histone H3-lysine 4 methyltransferase complexes in NR-mediated gene transcription
Seunghee Lee1, Robert G Roeder, Jae W Lee
1Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas 77030, USA.
Abstract:
Transcriptional regulation by nuclear hormone receptors (NRs) requires multiple coregulators that modulate chromatin structures by catalyzing a diverse array of posttranslational modifications of histones. Different combinations of these modifications yield dynamic functional outcomes, constituting an epigenetic histone code. This code is inscribed by histone-modifying enzymes and decoded by effector proteins that recognize specific covalent marks. One important modification associated with active chromatin structures is methylation of histone H3-lysine 4 (H3K4). Crucial roles for this modification in NR transactivation have been recently highlighted through our purification and subsequent characterization of a steady-state complex associated with ASC-2, a coactivator of NRs and other transcription factors. This complex, designated ASCOM for ASC-2 complex, contains H3K4-methyltransferase MLL3/HALR or its paralogue MLL4/ALR and represents the first Set1-like H3K4-methyltransferase complex to be reported in vertebrates. This review focuses on recent progress in our understanding of how ASCOM-MLL3 and ASCOM-MLL4 influence NR-mediated gene transcription and of their physiological function.
Related Concept Videos
Histone Modification
Acetylation
The enzyme histone acetyltransferase adds acetyl group to the histones. Another enzyme, histone deacetylase,...
Histone Modification
Acetylation
The enzyme histone acetyltransferase adds acetyl group to the histones. Another enzyme, histone deacetylase,...
Spreading of Chromatin Modifications
Writers
The writer is an enzyme that can...
The Nucleosome Core Particle
Nucleosomes, paradoxically, perform two opposite functions simultaneously. On the one hand, their primary aim is to protect the delicate DNA strands from physical damage and help achieve a higher compaction ratio. On the other hand, they must allow polymerase enzymes to access histone-bound DNA during...
The Nucleosome Core Particle
The paradox
Nucleosomes, paradoxically, perform two opposite functions simultaneously. On the one hand, their main responsibility is to protect the delicate DNA strands from physical damage and help achieve a higher compaction ratio. While on the other hand, they must allow polymerase enzymes to access DNA...
Nucleosome Remodeling
Nucleosome remodeling complex
Eukaryotic cells have specialized enzymes called ATP-dependent nucleosome remodeling enzymes. These enzymes...

