Differential abilities to engage inaccessible chromatin diversify vertebrate Hox binding patterns.

ABSTRACT: Although Hox genes encode for conserved transcription factors (TFs), they are further divided into anterior, central and posterior groups based on their DNA-binding domain similarity. The posterior Hox group expanded in the deuterostome clade and patterns caudal and distal structures. We aimed to address how similar Hox TFs diverge to induce different positional identities. We studied Hox TF DNA-binding and regulatory activity during an in vitro motor neuron differentiation system that recapitulates embryonic development. We found diversity in the genomic binding profiles of different Hox TFs, even among the posterior group paralogs that share similar DNA-binding domains. These differences in genomic binding were explained by differing abilities to bind to previously inaccessible si

SUBMITTER: Bulajic M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7710020 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature