A robust ultrasensitive transcriptional switch in noisy cellular environments.

ABSTRACT: Ultrasensitive transcriptional switches enable sharp transitions between transcriptional on and off states and are essential for cells to respond to environmental cues with high fidelity. However, conventional switches, which rely on direct repressor-DNA binding, are extremely noise-sensitive, leading to unintended changes in gene expression. Here, through model simulations and analysis, we discovered that an alternative design combining three indirect transcriptional repression mechanisms, sequestration, blocking, and displacement, can generate a noise-resilient ultrasensitive switch. Although sequestration alone can generate an ultrasensitive switch, it remains sensitive to noise because the unintended transcriptional state induced by noise persists for long periods. However, by jointly

SUBMITTER: Jeong EM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10944533 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature