Lucchesi John C, Kuroda Mitzi I
Department of Biology, O. W. Rollins Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30322.
Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115.
Cold Spring Harb Perspect Biol. 2015 May 1;7(5):a019398. doi: 10.1101/cshperspect.a019398.
Dosage compensation in Drosophila increases the transcription of genes on the single X chromosome in males to equal that of both X chromosomes in females. Site-specific histone acetylation by the male-specific lethal (MSL) complex is thought to play a fundamental role in the increased transcriptional output of the male X. Nucleation and sequence-independent spreading of the complex to active genes serves as a model for understanding the targeting and function of epigenetic chromatin-modifying complexes. Interestingly, two noncoding RNAs are key for MSL assembly and spreading to active genes along the length of the X chromosome.
果蝇中的剂量补偿作用会增加雄性个体中单个X染色体上基因的转录,使其与雌性个体中两条X染色体上基因的转录量相等。雄性特异性致死(MSL)复合体介导的位点特异性组蛋白乙酰化被认为在雄性X染色体转录输出增加中起关键作用。该复合体在活性基因上的成核及不依赖序列的扩散,为理解表观遗传染色质修饰复合体的靶向作用和功能提供了一个模型。有趣的是,两条非编码RNA对于MSL复合体沿着X染色体长度组装并扩散到活性基因至关重要。