In Vivo Characterization of Linc-p21 Reveals Functional cis-Regulatory DNA Elements.

ABSTRACT: The Linc-p21 locus, encoding a long non-coding RNA, plays an important role in p53 signaling, cell-cycle regulation, and tumor suppression. However, despite extensive study, confusion exists regarding its mechanism of action: is activity driven by the transcript acting in trans, in cis, or by an underlying functional enhancer? Here, using a knockout mouse model and a massively parallel enhancer assay, we delineate the functional elements at this locus. We observe that, even in tissues with no detectable Linc-p21 transcript, deletion of the locus significantly affects local gene expression, including of the cell-cycle regulator Cdkn1a. To characterize this RNA-independent regulatory effect, we systematically interrogated the underlying DNA sequence for enhancer activity at nucleotide resolu

SUBMITTER: Groff AF 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5014909 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature