Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 12, 2026
08:19
Quantitative Comparison of cis-Regulatory Element (CRE) Activities in Transgenic Drosophila melanogaster
Published on: December 19, 2011
Long-term evolution of regulatory DNA sequences. Part 1: simulations on global, biophysically-realistic
Elia Mascolo1, Réka Borbély1, Santiago Herrera-Álvarez2
1Institute of Science and Technology Austria, Am Campus 1, Klosterneuburg AT-3400, Austria.
Current Opinion in Genetics & Development
|May 10, 2026
Summary
This study reviews models of transcription factor binding to DNA to create a quantitative map of gene regulation. This map allows simulating the evolution of cis-regulatory elements and answering key evolutionary questions.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary biology
- Systems biology
- Synthetic biology
- Biophysics
Background:
- Promoters and enhancers are cis-regulatory elements (CREs) that control gene expression by binding transcription factors (TFs).
- Previous research developed models for TF-DNA interactions and their combined effects on gene expression.
Purpose of the Study:
- To synthesize TF-DNA interaction models into a quantitative genotype-phenotype map for gene regulation.
- To enable simulations of cis-regulatory element evolution and address fundamental evolutionary questions.
Main Methods:
- Review of modeling and simulation efforts for TF-DNA interactions.
- Development of a biophysically realistic, quantitative genotype-phenotype map for gene regulation.
Main Results:
- The proposed map provides a framework for simulating the evolution of regulatory sequences.
- Enables posing questions about the timescale of de novo CRE evolution and the landscape of regulatory functions.
Conclusions:
- A global map of gene regulation offers a powerful tool for evolutionary biology.
- This work facilitates mechanistic links between biophysics, systems, synthetic, and evolutionary biology.
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