The C. elegans Snail homolog CES-1 can activate gene expression in vivo and share targets with bHLH transcription factors.
Snail-type transcription factors (TFs) are found in numerous metazoan organisms and function in a plethora of cellular and developmental processes including mesoderm and neuronal development, apoptosis and cancer. So far, Snail-type TFs are exclusively known as transcriptional repressors. They repress gene expression by recruiting transcriptional co-repressors and/or by preventing DNA binding of activators from the basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) family of TFs to CAGGTG E-box sequences. Here we report that the Caenorhabditis elegans Snail-type TF CES-1 can activate transcription in vivo. Moreover, we provide results that suggest that CES-1 can share its binding site with bHLH TFs, in different tissues, rather than only occluding bHLH DNA binding. Together, our data indicate that there are at least two types of CES-1 target genes and, therefore, that the molecular function of Snail-type TFs is more plastic than previously appreciated.
Reece-Hoyes
John S
JS
Program in Gene Function and Expression, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605, USA.
Deplancke
Bart
B
Barrasa
M Inmaculada
MI
Hatzold
Julia
J
Smit
Ryan B
RB
Arda
H Efsun
HE
Pope
Patricia A
PA
Gaudet
Jeb
J
Conradt
Barbara
B
Walhout
Albertha J M
AJ
D000818:Animals; D051792:Basic Helix-Loop-Helix Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D001665:Binding Sites; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D010614:Pharynx / Q000378:metabolism; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic; D050436:Regulatory Elements, Transcriptional; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000378:metabolism*; D015533:Transcriptional Activation
D051792:Basic Helix-Loop-Helix Proteins; D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors; C517649:HLH-6 protein, C elegans; C121976:ces-1 protein, C elegans