Trithorax- and Polycomb-group response elements within an Ultrabithorax transcription maintenance unit consist of closely situated but separable sequences.

ABSTRACT: In Drosophila, two classes of genes, the trithorax group and the Polycomb group, are required in concert to maintain gene expression by regulating chromatin structure. We have identified Trithorax protein (TRX) binding elements within the bithorax complex and have found that within the bxd/pbx regulatory region these elements are functionally relevant for normal expression patterns in embryos and confer TRX binding in vivo. TRX was localized to three closely situated sites within a 3-kb chromatin maintenance unit with a modular structure. Results of an in vivo analysis showed that these DNA fragments (each approximately 400 bp) contain both TRX- and Polycomb-group response elements (TREs and PREs) and that in the context of the endogenous Ultrabithorax gene, all of these elements are essen

SUBMITTER: Tillib S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC84362 | biostudies-literature | 1999 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature