Promoter Region of Interleukin-2 Gene Undergoes Chromatin Structure Changes and Confers Inducibility on Chloramphenicol Acetyltransferase Gene During Activation of T Cells

作者：Ulrich K. Siebenlist, David B. Durand, Peter B. Bressler, Nikki J. Holbrook, Carol A. Norris, Malek Kamoun, Jeffrey A. Kant, Gerald R. Crabtree · 发表于：Molecular and Cellular Biology · 年份：1986 · DOI：10.1128/mcb.6.9.3042-3049.1986 · 被引用次数：67 · 研究领域：Immune Cell Function and Interaction、T-cell and B-cell Immunology、Immunotherapy and Immune Responses

The chromatin structure of the interleukin-2 (IL-2) gene was probed by DNase I treatment of isolated nuclei. The 5' region of the IL-2 gene contains three regions of hypersensitivity to DNase I. When peripheral blood T cells or Jurkat T cells are stimulated with mitogens, IL-2 message is induced, and the promoter region of the IL-2 gene develops an additional hypersensitive site. This suggests that a DNA sequence close to the transcriptional start site is involved in the transduction of the extracellular signal. Such a conclusion is further supported by DNA transfection experiments. A short segment of DNA, which includes the region of induced hypersensitivity, confers inducibility on the linked chloramphenicol acetyltransferase gene in transiently transfected Jurkat cells. In addition, cells of nonhematopoietic origins exhibit a strikingly different chromatin pattern of IL-2, suggesting a role during differentiation for some of the hypersensitive sites.