Human cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator gene (CFTR) transcription is tightly regulated by nucleotide sequences upstream of the initiator sequences. Our studies of human CFTR transcription focus on identifying transcription factors bound to an inverted CCAAT consensus or "Y-box element." The human homeodomain CCAAT displacement protein/cut homolog (CDP/cut) can bind to the Y-bo...

The histone methyl transferase Suv39H1 is involved in silencing by pericentric heterochromatin. It specifically methylates K9 of histone H3, thereby creating a high affinity binding site for HP1 proteins. We and others have shown recently that it is also involved in transcriptional repression by the retinoblastoma protein Rb. Strikingly, both HP1 localisation and repression by Rb also require, ...

Protein acetylation, especially histone acetylation, is the subject of both research and clinical investigation. At least four small-molecule histone deacetylase inhibitors are currently in clinical trials for the treatment of cancer. These and other inhibitors also affect microtubule acetylation. A multidimensional, chemical genetic screen of 7,392 small molecules was used to discover "tubacin...

In this issue of Molecular Cell, Weinberger et al. (2012) find that particular histone deacetylases (HDACs) regulate distinct stages of transcription, implicating chromatin dynamics in the generation of gene-specific noise within populations of genetically identical cells.

Wound healing disorders including diabetic ulcers, chronic venous leg ulcers and pressure are still remains uncured pose a stern challenge to health care system. Accumulation of dysfunctional macrophages over time have been identified as major underlying cause for wounds, however molecular events regulating these unclear. In present study, we found that histone H3K27 acetylation, an epigenetic ...

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a disease characterized by a block of maturation. Genes coding for core binding factors are rearranged in a considerable subset of AML cases and result in an altered interaction of core binding factor (CBF) subunits with transcriptional coregulators (NCoR/SMRT). Recruitment of histone deacetylase is also altered in AML, and a subsequent transcriptional repression...

Histone acetyltransferases and deacetylases are recruited by transcription factors and adapter proteins to regulate specific subsets of target genes. We were interested in identifying interaction partners of histone deacetylase 1 (HDAC1) that might be involved in conferring target or substrate specificity. Using the yeast two-hybrid system, we isolated the repressor of estrogen receptor activit...