Binding site turnover produces pervasive quantitative changes in transcription factor binding between closely related Drosophila species.

ABSTRACT: Changes in gene expression play an important role in evolution, yet the molecular mechanisms underlying regulatory evolution are poorly understood. Here we compare genome-wide binding of the six transcription factors that initiate segmentation along the anterior-posterior axis in embryos of two closely related species: Drosophila melanogaster and Drosophila yakuba. Where we observe binding by a factor in one species, we almost always observe binding by that factor to the orthologous sequence in the other species. Levels of binding, however, vary considerably. The magnitude and direction of the interspecies differences in binding levels of all six factors are strongly correlated, suggesting a role for chromatin or other factor-independent forces in mediating the divergence of transcription

SUBMITTER: Bradley RK 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2843597 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature