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Related Concept Videos

Co-activators and Co-repressors02:04

Co-activators and Co-repressors

Gene transcription is regulated by the synergistic action of several proteins that form a complex at a gene regulatory site. This is observed in eukaryotes, where the regulation of gene expression is a complex process. Regulatory proteins in eukaryotes can broadly be classified into two types – regulators that bind directly to specific DNA sequences and co-regulators that associate with regulatory proteins but cannot directly bind to the DNA. These co-regulators are further divided into...
Co-activators and Co-repressors02:04

Co-activators and Co-repressors

Gene transcription is regulated by the synergistic action of several proteins that form a complex at a gene regulatory site. This is observed in eukaryotes, where the regulation of gene expression is a complex process. Regulatory proteins in eukaryotes can broadly be classified into two types – regulators that bind directly to specific DNA sequences and co-regulators that associate with regulatory proteins but cannot directly bind to the DNA. These co-regulators are further divided into...
RNA Polymerase II Accessory Proteins02:36

RNA Polymerase II Accessory Proteins

Proteins that regulate transcription can do so either via direct contact with RNA Polymerase or through indirect interactions facilitated by adaptors, mediators, histone-modifying proteins, and nucleosome remodelers. Direct interactions to activate transcription is seen in bacteria as well as in some eukaryotic genes. In these cases, upstream activation sequences are adjacent to the promoters, and the activator proteins interact directly with the transcriptional machinery. For example, in...
Eukaryotic Transcription Inhibitors01:52

Eukaryotic Transcription Inhibitors

Certain biochemical processes, such as embryonic development and cell growth regulation, depend on the repression of specific genes. DNA binding proteins known as eukaryotic transcription inhibitors regulate the repression of gene expression in eukaryotes. The presence of these inhibitors at the required location and time in the cell is triggered by the presence of hormones and additional signals from other cells.
Eukaryotic transcription inhibitors usually contain two distinct domains, a DNA...
Prokaryotic Transcriptional Activators and Repressors01:58

Prokaryotic Transcriptional Activators and Repressors

The organization of prokaryotic genes in their genome is notably different from that of eukaryotes. Prokaryotic genes are organized, such that the genes for proteins involved in the same biochemical process or function are located together in groups. This group of genes, along with their regulatory elements, are collectively known as an operon. The functional genes in an operon are transcribed together to give a single strand of mRNA known as polycistronic mRNA.
Transcription of prokaryotic...
Prokaryotic Transcriptional Activators and Repressors01:58

Prokaryotic Transcriptional Activators and Repressors

The organization of prokaryotic genes in their genome is notably different from that of eukaryotes. Prokaryotic genes are organized, such that the genes for proteins involved in the same biochemical process or function are located together in groups. This group of genes, along with their regulatory elements, are collectively known as an operon. The functional genes in an operon are transcribed together to give a single strand of mRNA known as polycistronic mRNA.
Transcription of prokaryotic...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 18, 2026

Repressing Gene Transcription by Redirecting Cellular Machinery with Chemical Epigenetic Modifiers
10:28

Repressing Gene Transcription by Redirecting Cellular Machinery with Chemical Epigenetic Modifiers

Published on: September 20, 2018

Context is everything: activators can also repress.

Richard Festenstein1, Jackson P K Chan

  • 1Clinical Sciences Centre, Department of Medicine, Imperial College, London, UK. r.festenstein@imperial.ac.uk

Nature Structural & Molecular Biology
|October 6, 2012
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Transcription factors play a novel role in maintaining genome stability. Instead of activating genes, they help repress transcription and preserve heterochromatin structure in mammals.

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In vivo Application of the REMOTE-control System for the Manipulation of Endogenous Gene Expression
08:54

In vivo Application of the REMOTE-control System for the Manipulation of Endogenous Gene Expression

Published on: March 29, 2019

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 18, 2026

Repressing Gene Transcription by Redirecting Cellular Machinery with Chemical Epigenetic Modifiers
10:28

Repressing Gene Transcription by Redirecting Cellular Machinery with Chemical Epigenetic Modifiers

Published on: September 20, 2018

In vivo Application of the REMOTE-control System for the Manipulation of Endogenous Gene Expression
08:54

In vivo Application of the REMOTE-control System for the Manipulation of Endogenous Gene Expression

Published on: March 29, 2019

Area of Science:

  • Genetics
  • Molecular Biology
  • Epigenetics

Background:

  • Heterochromatin formation is crucial for regulating genome integrity, cell division, and gene expression.
  • Transcription factors are traditionally known for activating gene expression.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate a newly identified function of transcription factors in mammalian heterochromatin.
  • To explore the role of transcription factors in transcriptional repression within heterochromatic regions.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of transcription factor function in mammalian cells.
  • Investigating the impact of transcription factors on heterochromatic repeat regions.
  • Assessing the maintenance of transcriptional repression and heterochromatin structure.

Main Results:

  • Specific transcription factors were found to be essential for maintaining transcriptional repression.
  • These transcription factors are necessary for the stability of heterochromatin, particularly at repeat regions.
  • Contrary to their typical role, these factors do not activate gene expression in this context.

Conclusions:

  • Transcription factors have a previously unrecognized role in heterochromatin maintenance.
  • This function is critical for transcriptional repression at heterochromatic repeats in mammals.
  • This discovery expands our understanding of gene regulation and genome stability.