title: HAT activity is essential for CBP-1-dependent transcription and differentiation in Caenorhabditis elegans.
abstract: The p300/CBP family of transcriptional coactivators possesses multiple functional domains, including a histone acetyltransferase (HAT) and several activation domains. A number of models have been proposed to account for their roles in transcriptional activation, including interactions with basal transcription machinery and chromatin remodeling. However, individual contributions of these domains to transcriptional activation and their significance in living organisms remain unclear. We addressed the importance of the HAT activity of CBP-1, the worm ortholog of p300/CBP, in Caenorhabditis elegans with three different and complementary approaches. These include allele-specific RNA-mediated interference (RNAi), genetic rescue and the use of a specific chemical inhibitor of the p300/CBP HAT. Our findings demonstrate that HAT activity is of primary importance for CBP-1 to regulate transcription and to promote differentiation during C. elegans embryogenesis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Harvard Medical School, 200 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Victor
authors.forename: Yanxia
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Bei
authors.forename: Frederique
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gay
authors.forename: Dominica
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Calvo
authors.forename: Craig
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mello
authors.forename: Yang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Shi
mesh_terms: D000123:Acetyltransferases / Q000502:physiology*; D000483:Alleles; D000818:Animals; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000196:embryology / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000502:physiology*; D017353:Gene Deletion; D015801:Helminth Proteins / Q000502:physiology*; D051548:Histone Acetyltransferases; D009154:Mutation; D017354:Point Mutation; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary; D029701:Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors; D014158:Transcription, Genetic
chemical_list: D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins; D015801:Helminth Proteins; D029701:Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors; D000123:Acetyltransferases; C111709:CBP-1 protein, C elegans; D051548:Histone Acetyltransferases