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Updated: May 13, 2026

Monitoring Cell-autonomous Circadian Clock Rhythms of Gene Expression Using Luciferase Bioluminescence Reporters
Published on: September 27, 2012
Expression of the liver-enriched transcriptional activator protein DBP follows a stringent circadian rhythm
1Department of Molecular Biology, University of Geneva, Switzerland.
Abstract:
The liver-enriched transcriptional activator protein DBP accumulates in hepatocytes of adult rats according to a strictly controlled circadian rhythm. DBP is not detectable in liver nuclei during the morning hours. Its level raises sharply during the afternoon and reaches a maximum at about 8 p.m. During the night the cellular DBP concentration decreases below detectability. This oscillation is "free running," transcriptionally regulated, and may be under the negative control of glucocorticoid hormones. In keeping with the rhythmicity of DBP accumulation, the albumin gene, a putative target of DBP, is transcribed more efficiently in the evening than in the morning.
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