Faculty Collaboration Database

Embryonic Stem Cells: A Perfect Tool for Studying Mammalian Transcriptional Enhancers. J Stem Cell Res Ther 2012 Jul 05;Suppl 10

Date

07/05/2012

Pubmed ID

24303336

Pubmed Central ID

PMC3844140

DOI

10.4172/2157-7633.S10-007

Abstract

Transcriptional enhancers are DNA elements capable of regulating gene expression in-cis over great distances. With the recent availability of genomic approaches to define epigenetic marks and RNA levels, these previously difficult to study elements are now being extensively examined for their critical role in lineage-specific transcriptional regulation. This review sets out to highlight the use of embryonic stem cells (ESCs) in the study of enhancers, emphasizing that ESC have become an ideal model system for questions regarding mammalian transcriptional regulation. This review highlights the epigenetic "signature" of enhancers, their mechanism of action, and the role of non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) on enhancer function. We briefly review insulators, a sub-type of enhancers, and a novel model system for studying enhancer function in vivo. We conclude with some ongoing questions within the field.

Author List

Rao S

Author

Sridhar Rao MD, PhD Associate Professor in the Pediatrics department at Medical College of Wisconsin