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Spatial organization of genes as a component of regulated expression

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Abstract

The DNA of living cells is highly compacted. Inherent in this spatial constraint is the need for cells to organize individual genetic loci so as to facilitate orderly retrieval of information. Complex genetic regulatory mechanisms are crucial to all organisms, and it is becoming increasingly evident that spatial organization of genes is one very important mode of regulation for many groups of genes. In eukaryotic nuclei, it appears not only that DNA is organized in three-dimensional space but also that this organization is dynamic and interactive with the transcriptional state of the genes. Spatial organization occurs throughout evolution and with genes transcribed by all classes of RNA polymerases in all eukaryotic nuclei, from yeast to human. There is an increasing body of work examining the ways in which this organization and consequent regulation are accomplished. In this review, we discuss the diverse strategies that cells use to preferentially localize various classes of genes.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank Tom Misteli, Tom Blumenthal, and Jason Brickner for critical reading of the manuscript and members of the Engelke lab for useful discussion. This work was supported by NIH grant GM082875 to DRE and by the NIH University of Michigan Genetics Predoctoral Training Grant (T32 GM07544) to DAP.

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  1. Department of Biological Chemistry, University of Michigan, 1150 W. Medical Center Dr., Ann Arbor, MI, 48109-0606, USA

    Dave A. Pai & David R. Engelke

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  2. David R. Engelke
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Correspondence to David R. Engelke.

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Communicated by E.A. Nigg

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Pai, D.A., Engelke, D.R. Spatial organization of genes as a component of regulated expression. Chromosoma 119, 13–25 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00412-009-0236-2

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