Lesson 6 Flashcards
where are enhancers most often located?
upstream to the promotor, but they can be also found downstream or in the first intron as well
where are enhancers located in regards to the transcription start sites (TSS)?
distally
what are enhancers bound to an activator by?
a transcription factor and an RNA polymerase
what do enhancers cause?
the formation of a loop between the enhancer sequence and the promotor to initiate trancription
what are some examples of components bound by enhancers?
acetyl-transferases (p300 and CBP)
which two important histone modifications are harbored by enhancers?
H3K4me1 and H3K27ac
describe the amount of genes regulated by enhancers:
regulate multiple genes at once, usually regulate in cis (on the same sequence of DNA) but also in trans (rarely - different chromosomes)
where are histones located on enhancers when activated?
only at the boundaries of the enhancers
what is it called when an enhancer loops in the 3’ direction in respect to a certain gene?
sense
what is it called when an enhancer loops in the 5’ direction in respect to a certain gene?
antisense
describe the typical spatial orientation of enhancers:
typically relatively close, but they could also be intronic or very far away (on rare occasion even on different chromosomes)
name two histone markers that activate promotors:
H3K4me3 and H3K27ac
name a histone marker that inactivates promotors:
H3K27me3
name two histone markers that activate enhancers:
H3K4me1 and H3K27ac
Name one histone marker that inactivates enhancers:
H3K27me3
what is the significance of me3 in a histone?
always a negative signal which stands for the repression of transcription
what is different about a poised or closed enhancer?
H3K4me1 is an activated enhancer and H3K27me3 is a repressed enhancer
what has been discovered about RNAs and enhancers?
there are RNAs expressed on enhancers in both directions → eRNA
what does the level of eRNA expression at neuronal enhancers positively correlate with? And what does this suggest?
correlates with the level of messenger RNA synthesis at nearby genes, suggesting that eRNA synthesis occurs specifically at enhancers that are actively engaged in promoting mRNA synthesis
what are super enhancers described as?
key cell identity genes
what protein is specifically bound to enhancers and aided in the discovery of super enhancers?
Med1
describe the composition of super enhancers and their effect on the downstream gene:
many proteins bind to the site and upregulate the transcription of a downstream gene → you have a much longer sequence with more proteins bound
what does the binding of a super enhancer cause to the gene?
a high increase in gene expression
what are enhancers almost comparable to in terms of effect on expression?
housekeeping genes