Ch. 14 - Gene regulation Flashcards
CAP
- catabolite activator protein
- binds to DNA to activate gene transcription
gene regulation
- the ability of calls to control their level of gene expression
- ensures that proteins are produced at the right time and in the right amounts
- saves energy - only produces when needed
constitutive genes
- “housekeeping genes”
- unregulated and have essentially constant levels of expression
- encodes proteins that are constantly required for the survival of an organism (often metabolic enzymes)
gene regulation in eukaryotes
- necessary for cell differentiation
- organism’s genomes are all the same but proteomes are different
- different genes expressed and in different amounts
prokaryotic gene regulation
- responds to changes in the environment
- ex: when lactose is present, two proteins are made
1. lactose permease - transports lactose into the cell
2. beta-galactosidase - breaks down lactose
developmental gene regulation in mammals
ex: hemoglobin in fetal vs adult humans
- fetal hemoglobin has a higher affinity for oxygen than adult hemoglobin
- helps fetus to harvest oxygen from maternal blood
- promotor should remain inactive once out of utero
where gene regulation occurs in bacteria
- most commonly occurs at the level of transcription
- can control rate of translation
- also regulated at protein/post-translation level
where gene regulation occurs in Eukaryotes
- transcriptional most common
- RNA processing (not in bacteria)
- translational
- post-translation
regulatory transcription factors
- protein that binds to DNA, usually in the vicinity of a promoter
- affects the rate of transcription of one or more nearby genes
- in both prokaryotes and eukaryotes
regulatory sequence
- sequence of DNA that acts as a binding site for a regulatory protein
- influences rate of transcription
repressors
- transcription factors that inhibit transcription
- negative control
- when downstream from the promoter, it prevents the RNA polymerase from binding
activators
- transcription factors that increase the rate of transcription
- positive control
- changes the shape of DNA so that its more accessible by the RNA polymerase
small effector molecules
- molecule that affects gene transcription by binding to a regulatory transcription factor
- causes conformational change in TF, causing it to either bind or release DNA
two domains of regulatory transcription factors that respond to small effector molecules
- site where protein binds to DNA
- site specifically for the small effector molecule
polycistronic mRNA
- mRNA that contains coding sequences for two or more proteins
- allows coordinated regulation of a group of genes with a common function
- operons are polycistronic
lac operon
operon in genome of E.coli that contains the genes necessary to metabolize lactose
components of the lac operon
- lacP
- 3 structural genes
- lacZ
- lacY
- lacA
- lacO
- CAP site
lacP
- promoter region of the lac operon
lacZ
- codes for the protein beta-galactosidase
- converts a small percentage of lactose into allolactose
lacY
- codes for lactose permease
- membrane protein required for the transport of lactose into the cytoplasm
lacA
- codes for galactoside transacetylase
- transacetylase covalently modifies lactose and lactose analogues by attaching an acetyl group
- prevents toxic buildup
lacO
- operator
- regulatory site/sequence that provides binding site for repressor protein
CAP site
- regulatory site that binds the activator protein
lacI gene
- codes for the lac repressor protein
- constitutively expressed
- not considered part of the lac operon
CAP
- catabolite activator protein
- activator protein for the lac operon