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  • The EMBO Journal (2004) 23, 127 - 137
  • doi:10.1038/sj.emboj.7600035

Published online: 18 December 2003

Roles of SWI/SNF and HATs throughout the dynamic transcription of a yeast glucose-repressible gene

Fuqiang Geng and Brehon C Laurent

  1. Program in Molecular and Cellular Biology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, SUNY Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY, USA

Correspondence to:

Brehon C Laurent, Program in Molecular and Cellular Biology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Morse Institute for Molecular Genetics, SUNY Downstate Medical Center, 450 Clarkson Avenue, Box 44, Brooklyn, NY 11203, USA. Tel.: +1 718 270 3755; Fax: +1 718 270 2656; E-mail: brehon.laurent@downstate.edu

Received 18 June 2003; Accepted 12 November 2003

Eucaryotic gene expression requires chromatin-remodeling activities. We show by time-course studies that transcriptional induction of the yeast glucose-regulated SUC2 gene is rapid and shows a striking biphasic pattern, the first phase of which is partly mediated by the general stress transcription factors Msn2p/Msn4p. The SWI/SNF ATP-dependent chromatin-remodeling complex associates with the promoter in a similar biphasic manner and is essential for both phases of transcription. Two different histone acetyltransferases, Gcn5p and Esa1p, enhance the binding of SWI/SNF to the promoter during early transcription and are required for optimal SUC2 induction. Gcn5p is recruited to SUC2 simultaneously with SWI/SNF, whereas Esa1p associates constitutively with the promoter. This study reveals an unusual transcription pattern of a metabolic gene and suggests a novel strategy by which distinct chromatin remodelers cooperate for the dynamic activation of transcription.

  • Keywords:

    • biphasic,
    • Esa1,
    • Gcn5,
    • stress,
    • SWI/SNF