Response elements are short sequences of
DNA within a gene
promoter or
enhancer region that are able to bind specific
transcription factor
In molecular biology, a transcription factor (TF) (or sequence-specific DNA-binding factor) is a protein that controls the rate of transcription of genetic information from DNA to messenger RNA, by binding to a specific DNA sequence. The f ...
s and regulate
transcription of
gene
In biology, the word gene (from , ; "... Wilhelm Johannsen coined the word gene to describe the Mendelian units of heredity..." meaning ''generation'' or ''birth'' or ''gender'') can have several different meanings. The Mendelian gene is a b ...
s.
Under conditions of stress, a transcription activator protein binds to the response element and stimulates transcription. If the same response element sequence is located in the control regions of different genes, then these genes will be activated by the same stimuli, thus producing a coordinated response.
Hormone response element
A hormone response element (HRE) is a short sequence of
DNA within the
promoter of a gene, that is able to bind to a specific
hormone receptor complex and therefore regulate
transcription.
The sequence is most commonly a pair of
inverted repeat An inverted repeat (or IR) is a single stranded sequence of nucleotides followed downstream by its complementarity (molecular biology), reverse complement. The intervening sequence of nucleotides between the initial sequence and the reverse compleme ...
s separated by three nucleotides, which also indicates that the receptor binds as a
dimer. Specifically, HRE responds to steroid hormones, as the activated steroid receptor is the transcription factor binding HRE. This regulates the transcription of genes signalled by the steroid hormone.
A gene may have many different response elements, allowing complex control to be exerted over the level and rate of transcription.
HRE are used in
transgenic animal cells as
inducer
In molecular biology, an inducer is a molecule that regulates gene expression. An inducer functions in two ways; namely:
*By disabling repressors. The gene is expressed because an inducer binds to the repressor. The binding of the inducer to the r ...
s of gene expression.
Examples of HREs include estrogen response elements and androgen response elements.
Examples
Examples of response elements include:
*
Nuclear receptor response elements – two 6-meric repeats for dimeric binding
** Type 2 NR response elements: direct repeat RGKTCA motifs, canonically AGGTCA
***
Vitamin D response element (VDRE)
***
Retinoic acid response elements (RAREs)
***
ROR-response element
*** Thyroid hormone response element
*** Growth hormone response element (GHRE)
***
Peroxisome proliferator hormone response elements (PPREs)
** Type 1 NR response elements (typical of
hormone response elements) – inverted repeat
***
estrogen response elements (EREs)
***
androgen response elements (AREs)
**
Glucocorticoid response element (GRE)*
cAMP response element (CRE)
*
B recognition element
*
AhR-, dioxin- or xenobiotic- responsive element
*
Hypoxia-responsive elements
*
Serum response element (SRE)
*
Metal-responsive element (MRE)
*DNA damage response element (DRE)
*
IFN-stimulated response elements (ISREs)Calcium-response element CaRE1
*
Antioxidant response element (ARE) p53 response element
*
Sterol regulatory element
*
Polycomb
Polycomb-group proteins (PcG proteins) are a family of protein complexes first discovered in fruit flies that can remodel chromatin such that epigenetic silencing of genes takes place. Polycomb-group proteins are well known for silencing Hox genes ...
Response Elements (PREs)
*
Rev response element (RRE)
*
Wnt response element (WRE), core CTTTG
References
External links
*
DNA
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