An autoregulatory loop directs the tissue-specific expression of p63 through a long-range evolutionarily conserved enhancer.

ABSTRACT: p63, a p53 family member, is essential for the development of various stratified epithelia and is one of the earliest markers of many ectodermal structures, including the epidermis, oral mucosa, apical ectodermal ridge, and mammary gland. Genetic regulatory mechanisms controlling p63 spatial expression during development have not yet been defined. Using a genomic approach, we identified an evolutionarily conserved cis-regulatory element, located 160 kb downstream of the first p63 exon, which functions as a keratinocyte-specific enhancer and is sufficient to recapitulate expression of the endogenous gene during mouse embryogenesis. Dissection of the p63 enhancer activity revealed a positive autoregulatory loop in which the p63 proteins directly bind to and are essential regulators of the en

SUBMITTER: Antonini D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1446946 | biostudies-literature | 2006 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature