Genomic Organization of the Autonomous Regulatory Domain of Eyeless Locus in Drosophila Melanogaster

Overview

Journal G3 (Bethesda)

Publisher Oxford University Press

Specialties Genetics
Molecular Biology

Date 2021 Sep 27

PMID 34570231

Citations 1

Authors

Shreekant Verma

Rashmi U Pathak

Rakesh K Mishra

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

In Drosophila, expression of eyeless (ey) gene is restricted to the developing eyes and central nervous system. However, the flanking genes, myoglianin (myo), and bent (bt) have different temporal and spatial expression patterns as compared to the ey. How distinct regulation of ey is maintained is mostly unknown. Earlier, we have identified a boundary element intervening myo and ey genes (ME boundary) that prevents the crosstalk between the cis-regulatory elements of myo and ey genes. In the present study, we further searched for the cis-elements that define the domain of ey and maintain its expression pattern. We identify another boundary element between ey and bt, the EB boundary. The EB boundary separates the regulatory landscapes of ey and bt genes. The two boundaries, ME and EB, show a long-range interaction as well as interact with the nuclear architecture. This suggests functional autonomy of the ey locus and its insulation from differentially regulated flanking regions. We also identify a new Polycomb Response Element, the ey-PRE, within the ey domain. The expression state of the ey gene, once established during early development is likely to be maintained with the help of ey-PRE. Our study proposes a general regulatory mechanism by which a gene can be maintained in a functionally independent chromatin domain in gene-rich euchromatin.

Citing Articles

Transposable elements as scaffold/matrix attachment regions: shaping organization and functions in genomes.

Pathak R, Phanindhar K, Mishra R Front Mol Biosci. 2024; 10:1326933.

PMID: 38455359 PMC: 10918478. DOI: 10.3389/fmolb.2023.1326933.

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