An ectopic CTCF-dependent transcriptional insulator influences the choice of Vβ gene segments for VDJ recombination at TCRβ locus.

ABSTRACT: Insulators regulate transcription as they modulate the interactions between enhancers and promoters by organizing the chromatin into distinct domains. To gain better understanding of the nature of chromatin domains defined by insulators, we analyzed the ability of an insulator to interfere in VDJ recombination, a process that is critically dependent on long-range interactions between diverse types of cis-acting DNA elements. A well-established CTCF-dependent transcriptional insulator, H19 imprint control region (H19-ICR), was inserted in the mouse TCRβ locus by genetic manipulation. Analysis of the mutant mice demonstrated that the insulator retains its CTCF and position-dependent enhancer-blocking potential in this heterologous context in vivo. Remarkably, the inserted H19-ICR appears to

SUBMITTER: Shrimali S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3439925 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature