Gene Regulation

This textbook aims to describe the fascinating area of eukaryotic gene regulation for graduate students in all areas of the biomedical sciences. Gene expression is essential in shaping the various phenotypes of cells and tissues and as such, regulation of gene expression is a fundamental aspect of nearly all processes in physiology, both in healthy and in diseased states. Th is pivotal role for the regulation of gene expression makes this textbook essential reading for students of all the biomedical sciences, in order to be better prepared for their specialized disciplines. A complete understanding of transcription factors and the processes that alter their activity is a major goal of modern life science research. The availability of the whole human genome sequence (and that of other eukaryotic genomes) and the consequent development of next-generation sequencing technologies have significantly changed nearly all areas of the biological sciences. For example, the genome-wide location of histone modifications and transcription factor binding sites, such as provided by the ENCODE consortium, has greatly improved our understanding of gene regulation. Therefore, the focus of this book is the description of the post-genome understanding of gene regulation.

This textbook aims to describe the fascinating area of eukaryotic gene regulation for graduate students in all areas of the biomedical sciences. Gene expression is essential in shaping the various phenotypes of cells and tissues and as such, regulation of gene expression is a fundamental aspect of nearly all processes in physiology, both in healthy and in diseased states. This pivotal role for the regulation of gene expression makes this textbook essential reading for students of all the biomedical sciences, in order to be better prepared for their specialized disciplines. A complete understanding of transcription factors and the processes that alter their activity is a major goal of modern life science research. The availability of the whole human genome sequence (and that of other eukaryotic genomes) and the consequent development of next-generation sequencing technologies have significantly changed nearly all areas of the biological sciences. For example, the genome-wide location of histone modifications and transcription factor binding sites, such as provided by the ENCODE consortium, has greatly improved our understanding of gene regulation. Therefore, the focus of this book is the description of the post-genome understanding of gene regulation. The purpose of this book is to provide, in a condensed form, an overview on the present understanding of the mechanisms of gene regulation. The authors are not aiming to compete with comprehensive treatises, but rather focus on the essentials. Therefore, the authors have favored a high figure-to-text ratio following the rule stating that “a picture tells more than thousand words”. The content of the book is based on the lecture course, which is given by Prof. Carlberg since 2001 at the University of Eastern Finland in Kuopio. The book is subdivided into 4 sections and 13 chapters. Following the Introduction there are three sections, which take a view on gene regulation from the perspective of transcription factors, chromatin and non-coding RNA, respectively. Besides its value as a textbook, Mechanisms of Gene Regulation will be a useful reference for individuals working in biomedical laboratories.

Epigenetic Gene Expression and Regulation reviews current knowledge on the heritable molecular mechanisms that regulate gene expression, contribute to disease susceptibility, and point to potential treatment in future therapies. The book shows how these heritable mechanisms allow individual cells to establish stable and unique patterns of gene expression that can be passed through cell divisions without DNA mutations, thereby establishing how different heritable patterns of gene regulation control cell differentiation and organogenesis, resulting in a distinct human organism with a variety of differing cellular functions and tissues. The work begins with basic biology, encompasses methods, cellular and tissue organization, topical issues in epigenetic evolution and environmental epigenesis, and lastly clinical disease discovery and treatment. Each highly illustrated chapter is organized to briefly summarize current research, provide appropriate pedagogical guidance, pertinent methods, relevant model organisms, and clinical examples. Reviews current knowledge on the heritable molecular mechanisms that regulate gene expression, contribute to disease susceptibility, and point to potential treatment in future therapies Helps readers understand how epigenetic marks are targeted, and to what extent transgenerational epigenetic changes are instilled and possibly passed onto offspring Chapters are replete with clinical examples to empower the basic biology with translational significance Offers more than 100 illustrations to distill key concepts and decipher complex science

The use of molecular biology and biochemistry to study the regulation of gene expression has become a major feature of research in the biological sciences. Many excellent books and reviews exist that examine the experimental methodology employed in specific areas of molecular biology and regulation of gene expression. However, we have noticed a lack of books, especially textbooks, that provide an overview of the rationale and general experimental approaches used to examine chemically or disease-mediated alterations in gene expression in mammalian systems. For example, it has been difficult to find appropriate texts that examine specific experimental goals, such as proving that an increased level of mRNA for a given gene is attributable to an increase in transcription rates. Regulation of Gene Expression: Molecular Mechanisms is intended to serve as either a textbook for graduate students or as a basic reference for laboratory personnel. Indeed, we are using this book to teach a graduate-level class at The Pennsylvania State University. For more details about this class, please visit http://moltox. cas. psu. edu and select “Courses. ” The goal for our work is to provide an overview of the various methods and approaches to characterize possible mechanisms of gene regulation. Further, we have attempted to provide a framework for students to develop an understanding of how to determine the various mechanisms that lead to altered activity of a specific protein within a cell.

An overview of current computational approaches to metabolism and gene regulation.

Bacteria in various habitats are subject to continuously changing environmental conditions, such as nutrient deprivation, heat and cold stress, UV radiation, oxidative stress, dessication, acid stress, nitrosative stress, cell envelope stress, heavy metal exposure, osmotic stress, and others. In order to survive, they have to respond to these conditions by adapting their physiology through sometimes drastic changes in gene expression. In addition they may adapt by changing their morphology, forming biofilms, fruiting bodies or spores, filaments, Viable But Not Culturable (VBNC) cells or moving away from stress compounds via chemotaxis. Changes in gene expression constitute the main component of the bacterial response to stress and environmental changes, and involve a myriad of different mechanisms, including (alternative) sigma factors, bi- or tri-component regulatory systems, small non-coding RNA’s, chaperones, CHRIS-Cas systems, DNA repair, toxin-antitoxin systems, the stringent response, efflux pumps, alarmones, and modulation of the cell envelope or membranes, to name a few. Many regulatory elements are conserved in different bacteria; however there are endless variations on the theme and novel elements of gene regulation in bacteria inhabiting particular environments are constantly being discovered. Especially in (pathogenic) bacteria colonizing the human body a plethora of bacterial responses to innate stresses such as pH, reactive nitrogen and oxygen species and antibiotic stress are being described. An attempt is made to not only cover model systems but give a broad overview of the stress-responsive regulatory systems in a variety of bacteria, including medically important bacteria, where elucidation of certain aspects of these systems could lead to treatment strategies of the pathogens. Many of the regulatory systems being uncovered are specific, but there is also considerable “cross-talk” between different circuits. Stress and Environmental Regulation of Gene Expression and Adaptation in Bacteria is a comprehensive two-volume work bringing together both review and original research articles on key topics in stress and environmental control of gene expression in bacteria. Volume One contains key overview chapters, as well as content on one/two/three component regulatory systems and stress responses, sigma factors and stress responses, small non-coding RNAs and stress responses, toxin-antitoxin systems and stress responses, stringent response to stress, responses to UV irradiation, SOS and double stranded systems repair systems and stress, adaptation to both oxidative and osmotic stress, and desiccation tolerance and drought stress. Volume Two covers heat shock responses, chaperonins and stress, cold shock responses, adaptation to acid stress, nitrosative stress, and envelope stress, as well as iron homeostasis, metal resistance, quorum sensing, chemotaxis and biofilm formation, and viable but not culturable (VBNC) cells. Covering the full breadth of current stress and environmental control of gene expression studies and expanding it towards future advances in the field, these two volumes are a one-stop reference for (non) medical molecular geneticists interested in gene regulation under stress.