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Related Concept Videos

Cell Specific Gene Expression01:58

Cell Specific Gene Expression

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Multicellular organisms contain a variety of structurally and functionally distinct cell types, but the DNA in all the cells originated from the same parent cells. The differences in the cells can be attributed to the differential gene expression. Liver cells, whose functions include detoxification of blood, production of bile to metabolize fats, and synthesis of proteins essential for metabolism, must express a specific set of genes to perform their functions. Gene expression also varies with...
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What is Gene Expression?01:42

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Overview
Gene expression is the process in which DNA directs the synthesis of functional products, that is, proteins. Cells can regulate gene expression at various stages. It allows organisms to generate different cell types and enables cells to adapt to internal and external factors.
Genetic Information Flows from DNA to RNA to Protein
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What is Gene Expression?01:36

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A gene is a stretch of DNA that serves as the blueprint for functional RNAs and proteins. Since DNA is comprised  of nucleotides and proteins are comprised of amino acids, a mediator is required to convert the information encoded in DNA into proteins. This mediator is the messenger RNA (mRNA). mRNA copies the blueprint from DNA by a process called transcription. In eukaryotes, transcription occurs in the nucleus by complementary base-pairing with the DNA template. The mRNA is then...
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The gene expression in cells is regulated at different stages: (i) transcription, (ii) RNA processing, (iii) RNA localization, and (iv) translation. Transcriptional regulation is mediated by regulatory proteins such as transcription factors, activators, or repressors—these control gene expression by initiating or inhibiting the transcription of genes. Once a precursor or pre-mRNA is produced, it undergoes post-transcriptional modification, including 5' capping, splicing, and the...
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Updated: Dec 28, 2025

Single Cell Transcriptional Profiling of Adult Mouse Cardiomyocytes
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Mammalian gene expression variability is explained by underlying cell state.

Robert Foreman1,2, Roy Wollman1,2,3

  • 1Institute for Quantitative and Computational Biosciences, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA.

Molecular Systems Biology
|February 12, 2020
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Gene expression variability in mammals arises from cell state and transcriptional bursting. Cell state differences drive most variability, with transcriptional bursting playing a minimal role.

Keywords:
MERFISHCa2+ signalinggene expressionsingle celltranscriptional bursting

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Area of Science:

  • Molecular Biology
  • Genetics
  • Systems Biology

Background:

  • Gene expression variability is crucial in mammalian physiology and disease.
  • Variability stems from extrinsic (cell state) and intrinsic (transcriptional bursting) factors.
  • The relative contribution of these sources remains unquantified.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To quantify the relative contributions of cell state and transcriptional bursting to gene expression variability.
  • To differentiate between extrinsic and intrinsic sources of gene expression noise.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized multiplexed error-robust RNA fluorescent in situ hybridization (MERFISH) to measure gene expression.
  • Quantified multivariate gene expression of 150 Ca2+ signaling genes.
  • Correlated gene expression with dynamic Ca2+ response to ATP and cellular phenotypic states (size, cell cycle).

Main Results:

  • After accounting for cell state, remaining variability approached the Poisson limit for most genes.
  • Cellular phenotypic states significantly influenced gene expression variability.
  • Transcriptional bursting contributed minimally to overall expression variance.

Conclusions:

  • Cell state differences are the primary driver of gene expression variability in mammalian cells.
  • Intrinsic transcriptional bursting has a relatively minor impact on expression variance.
  • Understanding these sources is key for interpreting physiological and pathophysiological gene expression patterns.