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11 páginas, 8 figuras.-- et al. ; Complex genomes utilize insulators andboundary elements to help define spatial and temporal gene expression patterns. We report that a genome-wide B1 SINE (Short Interspersed Nuclear Element) retrotransposon (B1-X35S) has potent intrinsic insulator activity in cultured cells and live animals. This insulation is mediated by binding of the transcription factors dioxin receptor (AHR) and SLUG (SNAI2) to consensus elements present in the SINE. Transcription of B1-X35S is required for insulation. While basal insulator activity is maintained by RNA polymerase (Pol) III transcription, AHRinduced insulation involves release of Pol III and engagement of Pol II transcription on the same strand. B1-X35S insulation is also associated with enrichment of heterochromatin marks H3K9me3 and H3K27me3 downstream of B1-X35S, an effect that varies with cell type. B1-X35S binds parylated CTCF and, consistent with a chromatin barrier activity, its positioning between two adjacent genes correlates with their differential expression in mouse tissues. Hence, B1 SINE retrotransposons represent genome-wide insulators activated by transcription factors that respond to developmental, oncogenic, or toxicological stimuli. ; This work was supported by grants to P.M.F-S. from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (MICINN) (SAF2008-00462), the Junta de Extremadura (GRU09001), and the Red Temática de Investigación Cooperativa en Cáncer (RTICC) [RD06/0020/1016, Fondo de Investigaciones Sanitarias (FIS), Carlos III Institute, Spanish Ministry of Health]; by Grants to L.M. from the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science (BFU2006-12185) and MICINN (BIO2009-1297); and by Grants to J.L.G.-S. from the Spanish and Andalusian Governments (BFU2007-60042/BMC, Petri PET2007_0158, Proyecto de Excelencia CVI-3488 and CSD2007-00008). A.C.R. and F.J.G.-R. were supported by the MICINN, and E.M. was supported by CIBERER (ISCIII). All Spanish funding is co-sponsored by the European Union FEDER program. J.V.-A. and R.J.W. were funded by the Wellcome Trust and Cancer Research UK. ; Peer reviewed

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License. ; Hypoxia inducible factor (HIF) up-regulates the transcription of a few hundred genes required for the adaptation to hypoxia. This restricted set of targets is in sharp contrast with the widespread distribution of the HIF binding motif throughout the genome. Here, we investigated the transcriptional response of GYS1 and RUVBL2 genes to hypoxia to understand the mechanisms that restrict HIF activity toward specific genes. GYS1 and RUVBL2 genes are encoded by opposite DNA strands and separated by a short intergenic region (~1 kb) that contains a functional hypoxia response element equidistant to both genes. However, hypoxia induced the expression of GYS1 gene only. Analysis of the transcriptional response of chimeric constructs derived from the intergenic region revealed an inhibitory sequence whose deletion allowed RUVBL2 induction by HIF. Enhancer blocking assays, performed in cell culture and transgenic zebrafish, confirmed the existence of an insulator element within this inhibitory region that could explain the differential regulation of GYS1 and RUVBL2 by hypoxia. Hence, in this model, the selective response to HIF is achieved with the aid of insulator elements. This is the first report suggesting a role for insulators in the regulation of differential gene expression in response to environmental signals. ; The Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation, MICINN) grant numbers SAF2008-03147 (to L.del P.), BIO2009-1297 (to L.M.), BFU2010-14839 (to J.L.G.-S.), CSD2007-00008 (to J.L.G.-S.); Comunidad Autónoma de Madrid grant number S-SAL-0311_2006 (to L.del P.); the 7th Research Framework Programme of the European Union grant number METOXIA project ref. HEALTH-F2-2009-222741 (to L.del P.); Junta de Andalucía grant number CVI-3488 (to J.L.G.-S.); CIBERER (ISCIII) (to E.M.). Funding for open access charge: SAF2008-03147 (to L.del P.). ; Peer reviewed

Hypoxia inducible factor (HIF) up-regulates the transcription of a few hundred genes required for the adaptation to hypoxia. This restricted set of targets is in sharp contrast with the widespread distribution of the HIF binding motif throughout the genome. Here, we investigated the transcriptional response of GYS1 and RUVBL2 genes to hypoxia to understand the mechanisms that restrict HIF activity toward specific genes. GYS1 and RUVBL2 genes are encoded by opposite DNA strands and separated by a short intergenic region (∼1kb) that contains a functional hypoxia response element equidistant to both genes. However, hypoxia induced the expression of GYS1 gene only. Analysis of the transcriptional response of chimeric constructs derived from the intergenic region revealed an inhibitory sequence whose deletion allowed RUVBL2 induction by HIF. Enhancer blocking assays, performed in cell culture and transgenic zebrafish, confirmed the existence of an insulator element within this inhibitory region that could explain the differential regulation of GYS1 and RUVBL2 by hypoxia. Hence, in this model, the selective response to HIF is achieved with the aid of insulator elements. This is the first report suggesting a role for insulators in the regulation of differential gene expression in response to environmental signals ; The Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation, MICINN) grant numbers Nucleic Acids Research, 2012, Vol. 40, No. 5 1925 SAF2008-03147 (to L.del P.), BIO2009-1297 (to L.M.), BFU2010-14839 (to J.L.G.-S.), CSD2007-00008 (to J.L.G.-S.); Comunidad Autónoma de Madrid grant number S-SAL-0311_2006 (to L.del P.); the 7th Research Framework Programme of the European Union grant number METOXIA project ref. HEALTH-F2-2009-222741 (to L.del P.); Junta de Andalucía grant number CVI-3488 (to J.L.G.-S.); CIBERER (ISCIII) (to E.M.). Funding for open access charge: SAF2008-03147 (to L.del P.)

7 páginas, 6 figuras, 1 tabla.-- et al. ; PMCID: PMC3196567 ; Many genomic alterations associated with human diseases localize in noncoding regulatory elements located far from the promoters they regulate, making it challenging to link noncoding mutations or risk-associated variants with target genes. The range of action of a given set of enhancers is thought to be defined by insulator elements bound by the 11 11 11 11 zinc-finger nuclear factor CCCTC-binding protein (CTCF). Here we analyzed the genomic distribution of CTCF in various human, mouse and chicken cell types, demonstrating the existence of evolutionarily conserved CTCF-bound sites beyond mammals. These sites preferentially flank transcription factor–encoding genes, often associated with human diseases, and function as enhancer blockers in vivo, suggesting that they act as evolutionarily invariant gene boundaries. We then applied this concept to predict and functionally demonstrate that the polymorphic variants associated with multiple sclerosis located within the EVI5 gene impinge on the adjacent gene GFI1. ; This research was supported by the following grants: BFU2007-60042/BMC, BFU2010-14839, Petri PET2007_0158, CONSOLIDER CSD2007-00008 (Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (MICINN)) and Proyecto de Excelencia CVI-3488 (Junta de Andalucía) to J.L.G.-S.; BFU2009-07044 (MICINN) and Proyecto de Excelencia CVI 2658 (Junta de Andalucía) to F.C.; FIS PI081636 (ISCIII) to F.M.; PN-SAF2009-11491 (MICINN) and Proyecto de Excelencia P07-CVI-02551 (Junta de Andalucía) to A.A.; BFU2008-00838, CONSOLIDER CSD2007-00008 (MICINN), Regional Government of Madrid (CAM S-SAL-0190-2006) and the Pro-CNIC Foundation to M.M.; BFU2006-12185 and BIO2009-12697 (MICINN) to L.M.; Dirección General de Asuntos del Personal Académico, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (IN209403, IN214407 and IN203811) and Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología, México (CONACyT: 42653-Q, 58767 and 128464) to F.R.-T.; Intramural Research Program of the US NCBI (NIH) to I.O. and BIO2006-03380, CONSOLIDER CSD2007-00050 (MICINN) and RETICS RD07/0067/0012 (Spanish MICINN) to R.G. L.M. thanks A. Fernández for technical assistance and L. Barrios for statistical analysis. F.R.-T. thanks G.G. Avendaño for technical assistance. ; Peer reviewed