A conserved regulatory element located far downstream of the gls locus modulates gls expression through chromatin...

Chromatin loops formed between distant regulatory elements and promoters modulate gene expression. We identified a novel distant regulatory element located approximately 120kb downstream of the gls promoter, and examined its regulatory relevance to gls gene expression in C2C12 cells by a chromosome conformation capture assay. The distant element physically interacted with the gls promoter in myoblasts but not in myotubes. Semiquantitative analysis by real-time PCR showed more abundant gls transcripts in myoblasts than in myotubes. These findings suggest that this distant element differentially regulates gls gene expression through dynamic formation and abrogation of a chromatin loop during myogenesis.