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Current Genomics

Editor-in-Chief

ISSN (Print): 1389-2029
ISSN (Online): 1875-5488

Review Article

Epigenetic Regulation of Transcription in Trypanosomatid Protozoa

Author(s): Santiago Martinez-Calvillo*, Gabriela Romero-Meza , Juan C. Vizuet-de-Rueda, Luis E. Florencio-Martinez , Rebeca Manning-Cela and Tomas Nepomuceno-Mejia

Volume 19, Issue 2, 2018

Page: [140 - 149] Pages: 10

DOI: 10.2174/1389202918666170911163517

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Abstract

The Trypanosomatid family includes flagellated parasites that cause fatal human diseases. Remarkably, protein-coding genes in these organisms are positioned in long tandem arrays that are transcribed polycistronically. However, the knowledge about regulation of transcription initiation and termination in trypanosomatids is scarce. The importance of epigenetic regulation in these processes has become evident in the last years, as distinctive histone modifications and histone variants have been found in transcription initiation and termination regions. Moreover, multiple chromatin-related proteins have been identified and characterized in trypanosomatids, including histone-modifying enzymes, effector complexes, chromatin-remodelling enzymes and histone chaperones. Notably, base J, a modified thymine residue present in the nuclear DNA of trypanosomatids, has been implicated in transcriptional regulation. Here we review the current knowledge on epigenetic control of transcription by all three RNA polymerases in this group of early-diverged eukaryotes.

Keywords: Epigenetics, Transcription, Trypanosomatids, Post-translational modification, Histone variant, Nucleosome.

Graphical Abstract


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