Regulation of protocadherin gene expression by multiple neuron-restrictive silencer elements scattered in the gene cluster.

ABSTRACT: The clustered protocadherins are a subfamily of neuronal cell adhesion molecules that play an important role in development of the nervous systems in vertebrates. The clustered protocadherin genes exhibit complex expression patterns in the central nervous system. In this study, we have investigated the molecular mechanism underlying neuronal expression of protocadherin genes using the protocadherin gene cluster in fugu as a model. By in silico prediction, we identified multiple neuron-restrictive silencer elements (NRSEs) scattered in the fugu protocadherin cluster and demonstrated that these elements bind specifically to NRSF/REST in vitro and in vivo. By using a transgenic Xenopus approach, we show that these NRSEs regulate neuronal specificity of protocadherin promoters by suppressing t

SUBMITTER: Tan YP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2926608 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature