¹Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke Institute for Genome Sciences and Policy, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA

Correspondence: Dr JR Nevins, Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke Institute for Genome Sciences and Policy, Duke University Medical Center, Box 3382, Durham, NC 27710, USA. E-mail: j.nevins@duke.edu

²These authors contributed equally to this work.

Received 24 September 2007; Revised 14 January 2008; Accepted 8 February 2008; Published online 17 March 2008.

Abstract

Previous work has demonstrated that E2F proteins regulate the expression of various genes encoding proteins essential for DNA replication and cell-cycle progression. E2F1 in particular is required for the initial entry to the cell cycle from a quiescent state and is required for the activation of other E2F genes. Other work has demonstrated a role for the Myc transcription factor in the activation of a large number of genes associated with cell growth, including E2F genes. We now show that Myc is required to allow the interaction of the E2F1 protein with the E2F gene promoters. As such, Myc thus provides a link between the development of a growth-competent state during the initial stage of G₁ and the activation of genes essential for DNA replication at G₁/S.