Endocrine Abstracts

Ultradian glucocorticoid (GC) secretion is highly conserved, having been detected in all species studied. The GC corticosterone (CORT) is a ligand for the glucocorticoid receptor (GR), inducing GR recruitment to glucocorticoid responsive elements (GREs) to modulate transcription of GC-target genes. We have previously demonstrated that pulsatile GR recruitment to GREs upstream of the Period1 gene is associated with its pulsatile transcription in rat liver. Similarly th...

Transcription factors (TFs) regulate gene expression by interacting with chromatinized DNA response elements (REs). Access to these elements is dramatically restricted by chromatin organization, and modification of the nucleoprotein structure to allow factor binding is a key feature of cell selective gene regulation (Molecular Cell 29:611, 2008; Molecular Cell 43:145, 2011). Local transitions in chromatin access (often characterized as DNaseI hypersensitive sites (DHSs)) are o...