375 The chromatin architectural protein CTCF regulates expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines in the skin cells

Increased evidence suggests that alterations in chromatin structure result in aberrant pro-inflammatory cytokines expression that leads to prolonged inflammatory responses. CCCTC-binding factor (CTCF) is a transcriptional repressor that insulates the expression of neighbouring genes and is involved in chromatin interactions between distal and proximal gene regulatory elements. However, the role of CTCF in the control of pro-inflammatory cytokines expression in the skin cells remains unknown. Here, we show that CTCF is expressed in the nuclei of normal human epidermal keratinocytes (NHEK) and dermal fibroblasts (DF), while its siRNA-mediated deficiency induces cell-type specific changes in pro-inflammatory gene expression.
Source: Journal of Investigative Dermatology - Category: Dermatology Authors: Tags: Genetic Disease, Gene Regulation, and Gene Therapy Source Type: research