The circuitry of a master switch: Myod and the regulation of skeletal muscle gene transcription.
The expression of Myod is sufficient to convert a fibroblast to a skeletal muscle cell, and, as such, is a model system in developmental biology for studying how a single initiating event can orchestrate a highly complex and predictable response. Recent findings indicate that Myod functions in an instructive chromatin context and directly regulates genes that are expressed throughout the myogenic program, achieving promoter-specific regulation of its own binding and activity through a feed-forward mechanism. These studies are beginning to merge our understanding of how lineage-specific information is encoded in chromatin with how master regulatory factors drive programs of cell differentiation.
Tapscott
Stephen J
SJ
Division of Human Biology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, 1100 Fairview Avenue North, Seattle, WA 98109, USA.
D000818:Animals; D051792:Basic Helix-Loop-Helix Proteins; D002843:Chromatin / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000166:cytology / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism*; D017570:MyoD Protein / Q000378:metabolism*; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D014158:Transcription, Genetic / Q000235:genetics*
D051792:Basic Helix-Loop-Helix Proteins; D002843:Chromatin; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D017570:MyoD Protein; D014157:Transcription Factors