Dynamic chromatin organization during foregut development mediated by the organ selector gene PHA-4/FoxA.

ABSTRACT: Central regulators of cell fate, or selector genes, establish the identity of cells by direct regulation of large cohorts of genes. In Caenorhabditis elegans, foregut (or pharynx) identity relies on the FoxA transcription factor PHA-4, which activates different sets of target genes at various times and in diverse cellular environments. An outstanding question is how PHA-4 distinguishes between target genes for appropriate transcriptional control. We have used the Nuclear Spot Assay and GFP reporters to examine PHA-4 interactions with target promoters in living embryos and with single cell resolution. While PHA-4 was found throughout the digestive tract, binding and activation of pharyngeally expressed promoters was restricted to a subset of pharyngeal cells and excluded from the intestine.

SUBMITTER: Fakhouri TH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2920861 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature