Identification of AflR binding sites in the genome of Aspergillus flavus by ChIP-seq
We report here the AflR binding motif of Aspergillus flavus for the first time with the aid of ChIP-seq analysis. Of the 540 peak sequences associated with AflR binding events, 66.8% were  located within 2 kb upstream (promoter region) of translational start sites. The identified 18-bp  binding motif was a perfect palindromic sequence, 5'-CSSGGGWTCGAWCCCSSG'3' with S  representing G or C and W representing A or T. On closer examination, we hypothesized that the  18-bp motif sequence identified contained two identical parts (here called motif A and motif B).  Motif A was in positions 8–18 on the upper strand, while motif B was in positions 11-1 on the bottom  strand. The inferred length and sequence of the putative motif identified in A. flavus were similar to  previous findings in A. parasiticus and A. nidulans. Gene ontology analysis indicated that AflR bound  to other genes outside the aflatoxin biosynthetic gene cluster. Overall design: Examination of AflR binding sites in A. flavus (three replicates)