A directly repeated sequence in the beta-globin promoter regulates transcription in murine erythroleukemia cells

We have identified a previously undetected cis-acting element in the mouse beta-major globin promoter region that is necessary for maximal transcription levels of the gene in the inducible preerythroid murine erythroleukemia (MEL) cell line. This element, termed the beta-globin direct-repeat element (beta DRE), consists of a directly repeated 10-base-pair sequence, 5'-AGGGCAG(G)AGC-3', that lies just upstream from the TATA box of the promoter. The beta DRE motif is highly conserved in all adult mammalian beta-globin promoter sequences known. Mutation of either single repeat alone caused less than a twofold decrease in transcript levels. However, simultaneous mutation of both repeated regions resulted in a ninefold decrease in accumulated transcripts when the gene was transiently transfected into MEL cells. Attachment of the beta DRE to a heterologous promoter had little effect on levels of accumulated transcripts initiated from the promoter in undifferentiated MEL cells but resulted in a threefold increase in transcript levels in induced (differentiated) MEL cells. Similarly, a comparison of the relative effects of mutations in the beta DRE in uninduced and induced MEL cells indicated that the element was more active in induced cells. The increase in beta DRE activity upon MEL cell differentiation and the more pronounced effects of mutations in both repeats of the beta DRE have implications for the mechanism of action of the element in regulating beta-globin transcription and for mutational studies of other repetitive or redundant transcription elements.