Nrg1 and nrg2 transcriptional repressors are differently regulated in response to carbon source

The Nrg1 and Nrg2 repressors of Saccharomyces cerevisiae have highly similar zinc fingers and closely related functions in the regulation of glucose-repressed genes. We show that NRG1 and NRG2 are differently regulated in response to carbon source at both the RNA and protein levels. Expression of NRG1 RNA is glucose repressed, whereas NRG2 RNA levels are nearly constant. Nrg1 protein levels are elevated in response to glucose limitation or growth in nonfermentable carbon sources, whereas Nrg2 levels are diminished. Chromatin immunoprecipitation assays showed that Nrg1 and Nrg2 bind DNA both in the presence and absence of glucose. In mutant cells lacking the corepressor Ssn6(Cyc8)-Tup1, promoter-bound Nrg1, but not Nrg2, functions as an activator in a reporter assay, providing evidence that the two Nrg proteins have distinct properties. We suggest that the differences in expression and function of these two repressors, in combination with their similar DNA-binding domains, contribute to the complex regulation of the large set of glucose-repressed genes.     

真核转录抑制因子调控机制的研究进展

转录调控是分子生物学领域的研究热点,其中转录抑制因子通过与特异蛋白因子或染色体部位结合来阻碍基因的活化,对转录进行负调控。按照作用距离或抑制作用的直接与间接性来划分其调控机制,是过去比较主流的分类标准。但人们逐渐发现,许多转录抑制因子很难用这种标准进行确切的分类,于是又提出了一种新的、更加科学的分类方法：按照抑制作用是通过与基本转录复合物直接结合来发挥作用,通过转录激活因子间的相互作用来实现,还是通过改变染色体结构来完成,将转录抑制因子分为三类。