stephen jones
IMGENEX India Pvt Ltd. the only biotech company in Orissa and one of its kinds in Eastern India.
Transcriptional Factors And Regulators.
- By stephen jones
- Published 07/16/2008
All the cellular processes in living cells such as growth, development, morphogenesis and cellular differentiation are a product of gene expression programs involving complicated transcriptional regulation of several genes. This process of transcriptional regulation is tightly controlled and coordinated by proteins called transcriptional regulators. These transcriptional regulators and factors are DNA-binding proteins that bind to the promoter or enhancer sequences on the DNA and facilitate either transcriptional repression or activation.
There are three principal types of transcription factors. These include basal transcription factors, upstream transcription factors and inducible transcription factors. The basic structure of every transcriptional factor mainly contains a DNA-binding domain and an activator domain. DNA-binding motifs found in transcription factors include zinc-finger, helix-loop-helix, helix-turn-helix, leucine zipper and high-mobility groups, based on which transcription factors are classified. The activator domain of these transcription factors interacts with components of transcription machinery such as RNA polymerases and associated transcription regulators.
Regulation of transcriptional
factors is a complex mechanism that ensures exact spatio-temporal expression of
genes.
In response to a specific cellular stimulus, these trans-regulatory
factors are activated in a sequential manner. Upon activation, these factors
recruit transcriptional co-regulators such as histones that function as
co-activators or co- repressors and aid in modifying chromatin structure.
Altered activation of these regulators is often associated with various
pathologies such as chronic disorders and malignancies. Recent studies are
concentrating on developing improved disease treatment strategies through
identification of different transcription factor-binding patterns and blocking
them.
There are several families of trans-regulatory factors that control critical cellular signaling cascades involved in cell proliferation, survival, lineage development and cellular differentiation. These include Rel/NF-kB family, AP-1 family, STAT family of transcription factors, homeodomain proteins, DNA-binding proteins, POU transcription factors, nuclear hormone receptor family, p53 family and E2F family.
IMGENEX India Pvt Ltd.
the only biotech company in Orissa and one of its kinds in
