title: Rheostat control of gene expression by metabolites.
abstract: Organisms adapt to changes in environmental conditions by altering gene expression. Such homeostatic control is apparent in metabolism, where biosynthetic metabolites play a role in regulatory feedback loops. Increasing evidence shows that small-molecule metabolites also shape the structure of chromatin and directly regulate the transcription and translation processes. These endogenous metabolites bind specialized histones, are used as substrates by chromatin-modifying enzymes, regulate the activity of transcriptional corepressors, and even modulate the structure of RNA itself. In doing so, they act as dynamic rheostats that fine-tune the activity of hard-wired gene circuits. Metabolites emerge as key effectors in tweaking gene expression.
authors.affiliation: Gene Expression Unit and Structural and Computational Biology Unit, European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Meyerhofstrasse 1, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany. ladurner@embl.de
authors.forename: Andreas G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Ladurner
mesh_terms: D000227:Adenine Nucleotides / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D002843:Chromatin / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure; D042002:Chromatin Assembly and Disassembly / Q000502:physiology; D044127:Epigenesis, Genetic; D025461:Feedback, Physiological / Q000502:physiology*; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation / Q000502:physiology*; D006657:Histones / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D008957:Models, Genetic; D010084:Oxidation-Reduction; D015398:Signal Transduction; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D000227:Adenine Nucleotides; D002843:Chromatin; D006657:Histones; D014157:Transcription Factors