• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• 제25권6호
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• pp.789-793
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• 2012

Fertilization of the oocyte commences embryogenesis during which maternally inherited mRNAs are degraded and the embryonic genome is activated. Transcription of embryonic mRNA is initiated by embryonic genome activation (EGA). RNA polymerase II (RNA Pol II) is responsible for the synthesis of mRNAs and most small nuclear RNAs, and consists of 12 subunits, the largest of which characteristically harbors a unique C-terminal domain (CTD). Transcriptional activity of RNA Pol II is highly regulated, in particular, by phosphorylation of serine residues in the CTD. Here, we have shown the presence of RNA Pol II CTD phosphoisoforms in porcine oocytes and preimplantation embryos. The distribution pattern as well as phosphorylation dynamics in germinal vesicles and during embryogenesis differed in developmental stages with these isoforms, indicating a role of RNA Pol II CTD phosphorylation at the serine residue in transcriptional activation during both oocyte growth and embryonic genome activation. We additionally examined the effects of the RNA Pol II inhibitor, ${\alpha}$-amanitin, on embryo development. Our results show that inhibition of polymerase, even at very early stages and for a short period of time, dramatically impaired blastocyst formation. These findings collectively suggest that the functionality of maternal RNA Pol II, and consequently, expression of early genes regulated by this enzyme are essential for proper embryo development.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• 제20권7호
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• pp.9.1-9.13
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• 2017

Background: Metal-responsive transcription factor-1 (MTF-1) is a key transcriptional regulator playing crucial roles in metal homeostasis and cellular adaptation to diverse oxidative stresses. In order to understand cellular pathways associated with metal regulation and stress responses in Pacific abalone (Haliotis discus hannai), this study was aimed to isolate the genetic determinant of abalone MTF-1 and to examine its expression characteristics under basal and experimentally stimulated conditions. Results: The abalone MTF-1 shared conserved features in zinc-finger DNA binding domain with its orthologs; however, it represented a non-conservative shape in presumed transactivation domain region with the lack of typical motifs for nuclear export signal (NES) and Cys-cluster. Abalone MTF-1 promoter exhibited various transcription factor binding motifs that would be potentially related with metal regulation, stress responses, and development. The highest messenger RNA (mRNA) expression level of MTF-1 was observed in the testes, and MTF-1 transcripts were detected during the entire period of embryonic and early ontogenic developments. Abalone MTF-1 was found to be Cd inducible and highly modulated by heat shock treatment. Conclusion: Abalone MTF-1 possesses a non-consensus structure of activation domains and represents distinct features for its activation mechanism in response to metal overload and heat stress. The activation mechanism of abalone MTF-1 might include both indirect zinc sensing and direct de novo synthesis of transcripts. Taken together, results from this study could be a useful basis for future researches on stress physiology of this abalone species, particularly with regard to heavy metal detoxification and thermal adaptation.

• Molecules and Cells
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• 제22권2호
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• pp.163-167
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• 2006

Histone deacetylase (HDAC) activity is commonly associated with transcriptional repression. However, there is also evidence for a function in transcriptional activation. Previous studies have demonstrated a fundamental role of deacetylase activity in $IFN{\alpha}$-responsive gene transcription. In the case of type II IFN ($IFN{\gamma}$) results are controversial: some genes require HDAC activity, while transcription of others is repressed by HDAC. To investigate the effect of HDAC on transcription of an $IFN{\gamma}$-activated gene, real-time PCR was used to measure CXCL10 mRNA in Hela cells stimulated with $IFN{\gamma}$ in the presence or absence of the HDAC inhibitor TSA. Chromatin imunoprecipitation combined with real-time PCR was used to check acetylation of histone H4 and recruitment of the STAT1 complex to the ISRE locus of the CXCL10 gene. Activation of CXCL10 transcription in response to $IFN{\gamma}$ was paralleled by a decrease in histone H4 acetylation and an increase in recruitment of the STAT1 complex to the CXCL10 ISRE locus. The transcription of CXCL10 and histone H4 deacetylation were blocked by TSA, but the latter had no obvious affect on recruitment of the STAT1 complex. Our data indicate that $IFN{\gamma}$ and STAT-dependent gene transcription requires the participation of HDAC, as does the $IFN{\alpha}$-STAT pathway.

• 한국환경성돌연변이발암원학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국환경성돌연변이발암원학회 2002년도 Current Trends in Toxicological Sciences
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• pp.25-35
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• 2002

Transcription factor Nrf2 is essential for the antioxidant responsive element (ARE)-mediated induction of phase II detoxifying and oxidative stress enzyme genes. Detailed analysis of differential Nrf2 activity displayed in transfected cell lines ultimately led to the identification of a new protein, which we named Keap1, that suppresses Nrf2 transcriptional activity by specific binding to its evolutionarily conserved amino-terminal regulatory domain. The closest homolog of Keap1 is a Drosophila actin-binding protein called Kelch, implying that Keap1 might be a Nrf2 cytoplasmic effector. We then showed that electrophilic agents antagonize Keap1 inhibition of Nrf2 activity in vivo, allowing Nrf2 to traverse from the cytoplasm to the nucleus and potentiate the ARE response. We postulate that Keap1 and Nrf2 constitute a crucial cellular sensor for oxidative stress, and together mediate a key step in the signaling pathway that leads to transcriptional activation by this novel Nrf2 nuclear shuttling mechanism. The activation of Nrf2 leads in turn to the induction of phase II enzyme and antioxidative stress genes in response to electrophiles and reactive oxygen species.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• 제22권4호
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• pp.308-313
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• 2014

Activator protein-1 (AP-1) is an inducible transcription factor that contributes to the generation of chronic inflammation in response to oxidative and electrophilic stress. Previous studies have demonstrated that the PI3K/Akt1 pathway plays an important role in the transcriptional regulation of AP-1 expression. Although the histone post-translational modifications (PTMs) are assumed to affect the AP-1 transcriptional regulation by the PI3K/Akt pathway, the detailed mechanisms are completely unknown. In the present study, we show that heterochromatin 1 gamma ($HP1{\gamma}$) plays a negative role in TPA-induced c-Jun and c-Fos expression. We show that TPA-induced Akt1 directly phosphorylates $HP1{\gamma}$, abrogates its suppressive function and increases the interaction between histone H3 and 14-3-$3{\varepsilon}$. Collectively, these our data illustrate that the activation of PI3K/Akt pathway may play a permissive role in the recruitment of histone readers or other coactivators on the chromatin, thereby affecting the degree of AP-1 transcription.

• Molecules and Cells
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• 제39권10호
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• pp.715-721
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• 2016

Plants have become physiologically adapted to a seasonally shifting environment by evolving many sensory mechanisms. Seasonal flowering is a good example of adaptation to local environmental demands and is crucial for maximizing reproductive fitness. Photoperiod and temperature are major environmental stimuli that control flowering through expression of a floral inducer, FLOWERING LOCUS T (FT) protein. Recent discoveries made using the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana have shown that the functions of photoreceptors are essential for the timing of FT gene induction, via modulation of the transcriptional activator CONSTANS (CO) at transcriptional and post-translational levels in response to seasonal variations. The activation of FT transcription by the fine-tuned CO protein enables plants to switch from vegetative growth to flowering under inductive environmental conditions. The present review briefly summarizes our current understanding of the molecular mechanisms by which the information of environmental stimuli is sensed and transduced to trigger FT induction in leaves.

• 생명과학회지
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• 제17권11호
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• pp.1587-1592
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• 2007

Locus control region (LCR) is a cia-acting element which regulates the transcription of genes in developmental stage and/or tissue-specific pattern. Typically, LCR consists of several DNase I hypersensitive sites (HSs), where the binding motifs for transcriptional activators are present. The binding of activators to the HSs recruits chromatin modifying complexes to the LCR, opening chromatin structure and modifying histones covalently through the locus. LCR forms close physical contact with target gene located at a distance by looping away intervening region. In addition, non-coding RNA is transcribed from LCR toward target genes in continuously acetylated active domain. These structural and functional features of LCR suggest that the LCR plays many roles in chromatin activation and transcriptional regulation.

• 대한예방한의학회지
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• 제6권2호
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• pp.147-155
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• 2002

The musk has been reported to have significant anti-inflammatory activities in clinical use and several animal models and we examined the effects of water soluble fraction(WSF) of the musk on murine peritoneal macrophages. WSF decreased the production of nitric oxide from the lipopolysaccharide(LPS)-treated murine peritoneal macrophages and also reduced the phagocytic activity of macrophages on the opsonized sheep red blood cells(SRBC). Transcriptional expression level of the inducible nitric oxide synthase(iNOS) was also decreased and the viability of the treated macrophages was not affected by WSF, suggesting that the effects could be partly explained by transcriptional regulation. Contrary to down-regulating iNOS expression, WSF slightly increased the release of tumor necrosis factor-alpha$(TNF-{\alpha})$, which implied its selective action on cellular pathways activated by LPS. Our results showed that anti-inflammatory activities of the musk could be partly explained by the inhibitory effects of the water soluble fraction on the macrophageal activation.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• 제36권3호
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• pp.294-300
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• 2009

Activation tagging that uses T-DNA vectors containing multimerized transcriptional enhancers from the cauliflower mosaic virus (CaMV) 35S gene is a powerful tool to determine gene function in plants. This approach has been successfully applied in screening various types of mutations and cloning the corresponding genes. We generated an activation tagged hairy root pool of ginseng (Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer) in an attempt to isolate genes involved in the biosynthetic pathway of ginsenoside (triterpene saponin), which is known as the major active ingredient of the root. Quantitative and qualitative variation of ginsenoside in activation tagged hairy root lines were profiled using LC/MS. Metabolic profiling data enabled selection of a specific hairy root line which accumulated ginsenoside at a higher level than other lines. The relative expression level of several genes of triterpene biosynthetic pathway in the selected hairy root line was determined by real time RT-PCR. Overall results suggest that the activation tagged ginseng hairy root system described in this study would be useful in isolating genes involved in a complex metabolic pathway from genetically intractable plant species by metabolic profiling.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• 제59권3호
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• pp.215-220
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• 2016

식물의 이차생장의 결과로 생산되는 바이오매스의 대부분은 식물의 이차세포벽에 축적된다. 식물의 이차세포벽은 크게 셀룰로스, 헤미셀룰로스, 리그닌이라는 3가지 물질로 구성되며 이들 중 페놀성 복합 화학 물질인 리그닌은 셀룰로스나 헤미셀룰로스와 달리 알코올 발효과정의 저해 물질로이다. 따라서, 식물의 이차세포벽 생합성의 과정을 조절함으로 전체 바이오매스의 생산량과 조성을 바이오 에너지 생산을 위해 최적 조건으로 조절함으로써 바이오 에탄올 생산을 최대화할 수 있을 것이다. 본 연구에서는 애기장대 유래 MYB7 유전자를 CaMV35S 프로모터 조절 하에서 과별현되게 한 식물체와 식물의 전사조절에서 하위 특정 유전자의 발현을 저해시키는 것으로 잘 알려진 SRDX 융합 단백질 즉, MYB7-SRDX 과발현체를 제작하여 그 특성을 조사하였다. 그 결과 MYB7 전사조절 인자가 리그닌의 생합성을 억제 조절한다는 결과를 관찰하였다. 이는 MYB7 전사조절인자를 이용하면 바이오 에탄올 발효과정에 저해 물질로 작용하는 리그닌을 경감시킬 수 있는 기초 자료로 사용할 수 있을 것이다.