Control of Gene Expression 1: Transcriptional Controls Flashcards
What makes a cell different?
There are the same amount of genes (~25,000) but they express different sets of proteins
Each cell has the same genome - differentiation in cells depends on changes in gene expression
What is an experiment that proves there is no loss of genes in cell differentiation?
Take a skin cell from a frog and remove its nucleus.
Take an unfertilized egg and destroy its nucleus by UV light
Inject the nucleus from the skin cell into the empty egg and a normal embryo will form. A tadpole will be produced
What is RNA Seq?
Technology that uses the capabilities of next-generation sequencing to reveal a snapshot of RNA presence and quantity from a genome at a given moment in time
Can look at the different populations of RNA
What gene using RNA seq, showed that many cells including embryonic stem, liver, muscle etc expressed it?
Beta-actin gene
The higher the read the more it is expressed. How many times it sequences the RNA shows that relative expressiveness
Proteins that are common among different cell types are called what?
Housekeeping proteins
e.g glucose metabolism - required by many cells
Proteins that are only found in a few select cell types are called what?
Specifically limited proteins
e.g hemoglobin
A typical human cell expresses how much of its 25,000 genes?
30-60%
But level of gene expression varies
Different cell types expressing different genes and level of gene expression can be used in what procedures?
Fingerprint expression profiles
microarrays
or RNA Seq
What are factors that can change gene expression post transcription?
Alternative splicing (dystrophin gene), post translational modification
What does gene regulation require?
Short stretches of DNA of defined sequence (recognition sites for DNA binding proteins)
and gene recognition sequences for regulatory proteins
What is the master control protein for the production of red blood cells? What is its recognition sequence?
GATA1
TGATAG
Where can recognition sequences be relative to first exon?
Proximal or distal (e.g 50 kb away)
In DNA motif recognition regulatory proteins associate with what?
major groove
What do proteins recognize and bind to in major groove?
bases: major groove presents a specific face for each of the specific base pairs
CTGA
A gene regulatory protein recognizes a specific ______
DNA sequence
The surface of the regulatory protein is extensively _________ to the surface of the DNA region to which it binds
complementary
A series of contacts is made with the DNA involving ___ possible configurations
4
In the possible configurations of base pairs what does Blue stand for?
Possible hydrogen bond donors
In the possible configurations of base pairs what does Red stand for?
Possible hydrogen bond acceptors
In the possible configurations of base pairs what does the yellow stand for?
methyl groups
In the possible configurations of base pairs what does the white stand for?
Hydrogen atom
Gene regulatory proteins read the ____ of the DNA helix
outside
What does a typical gene regulatory protein-DNA interaction involve?
10-20 interactions
Sequence specific transcription factors are considered to be what?
modular: domains that have specific jobs to do
What are the four possible modules of a DNA transcription factor?
DNA-Binding module
Dimerization module
Activation Module
Regulatory Module
(Every/not every) transcription factor will have all modules
Not every
A transcription factor will have what 2 modules?
DNA-binding module
and activation module
What two modules COULD (optional) transcription factors possibly have?
Dimerization and regulatory modules
What experiment provided evidence for transcription factors being modular?
ESSAY
Yeast study
Two plasmids: reporter gene construct (DNA target) It is going to report of a promotor and gene is active (gene is the lacZ gene)
and experimental plasmid (making transcription factor) that binds to
UAS=upstream activation sequence
Take a full protein- this protein has this one has two modules. How do we find that out? Create plasmids that have deletions and see if previous actions are not taking place.
Example of a result: If DNA-binding domain is deleted then Binding to UAS will not happen. as a result then there will be no GAL4 protein activity
What are the four most common DNA-binding domain structural motifs?
Helix-turn-helix
Zinc finger motif
Leucine zipper
Helix-loop-helix
*also homeodomain and beta-sheet
What is the simplest most common DNA-binding motif?
Helix-turn-helix
Describe Helix-turn-helix
- two alpha helices connected by a short chain of amino acids that make the “turn” -turned at fixed angle
Which helix of helix-turn-helix is the DNA binding module?
The longer helix, it fits into major groove
The side chains of amino acids recognize DNA motif
Most of the time Helix-turn-helix motifs bind as what?
Symmetric dimers: bind DNA as dimers