title: Negative autoregulation speeds the response times of transcription networks.
abstract: Cells regulate gene expression using networks of transcription interactions; it is of interest to discover the principles that govern the dynamical behavior of such networks. An important characteristic of these systems is the rise-time: the delay from the initiation of production until half maximal product concentration is reached. Here we employ synthetic gene circuits in Escherichia coli to measure the rise-times of non-self-regulated and of negatively autoregulated transcription units. Non-self-regulated units have a rise-time of one cell-cycle. We demonstrate experimentally that negative autoregulation feedback (also termed autogenous control) reduces the rise-time to about one fifth of a cell-cycle. This agrees with an analytical solution of a mathematical model for negative autoregulation. This may help in understanding the function of negative autoregulation, which appears in over 40% of known transcription factors in E.coli.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Cell Biology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel.
authors.forename: Nitzan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Rosenfeld
authors.forename: Michael B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Elowitz
authors.forename: Uri
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Alon
mesh_terms: D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D025461:Feedback, Physiological; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D005798:Genes, Bacterial; D006706:Homeostasis; D007700:Kinetics; D008954:Models, Biological; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D014158:Transcription, Genetic
chemical_list: D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors