NELF Potentiates Gene Transcription in the Drosophila Embryo

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 5; no. 7; p. e11498
• Main Authors: Wang, Xiaoling, Hang, Saiyu, Prazak, Lisa, Gergen, J. Peter
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 09.07.2010; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Activation; Animals; Biochemistry; Biochemistry/Transcription and Translation; Biology; Blotting, Western; Chromatin Immunoprecipitation; Combinatorial analysis; Developmental Biology/Developmental Molecular Mechanisms; Developmental Biology/Embryology; Developmental Biology/Molecular Development; Developmental Biology/Pattern Formation; Developmental stages; DNA-directed RNA polymerase; Drosophila; Drosophila - embryology; Drosophila - genetics; Drosophila - metabolism; Drosophila melanogaster; Elongation; Embryo; Embryo, Nonmammalian - metabolism; Embryogenesis; Embryonic development; Embryonic growth stage; Embryos; Experiments; Gene expression; Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental - genetics; Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental - physiology; Gene regulation; Gene silencing; Genes; Genetic aspects; Genetics; Genetics and Genomics/Animal Genetics; Genetics and Genomics/Functional Genomics; Genetics and Genomics/Gene Expression; Genetics and Genomics/Gene Function; In Situ Hybridization; In vivo methods and tests; Insects; Molecular Biology/Transcription Elongation; Molecular Biology/Transcription Initiation and Activation; Ontology; Promoter Regions, Genetic - genetics; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; Ribonucleic acid; RNA; RNA polymerase II; RNA Polymerase II - genetics; RNA Polymerase II - metabolism; Stem cells; Transcription (Genetics); Transcription elongation; Transcription Factors - genetics; Transcription Factors - metabolism; Zebrafish; New York; United States > US
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0011498

A hallmark of genes that are subject to developmental regulation of transcriptional elongation is association of the negative elongation factor NELF with the paused RNA polymerase complex. Here we use a combination of biochemical and genetic experiments to investigate the in vivo function of NELF in the Drosophila embryo. NELF associates with different gene promoter regions in correlation with the association of RNA polymerase II (Pol II) and the initial activation of gene expression during the early stages of embryogenesis. Genetic experiments reveal that maternally provided NELF is required for the activation, rather than the repression of reporter genes that emulate the expression of key developmental control genes. Furthermore, the relative requirement for NELF is dictated by attributes of the flanking cis-regulatory information. We propose that NELF-associated paused Pol II complexes provide a platform for high fidelity integration of the combinatorial spatial and temporal information that is central to the regulation of gene expression during animal development.