Abstract
Differentiation of smooth muscle cells is accompanied by the transcriptional activation of an array of muscle-specific genes controlled by serum response factor (SRF). Myocardin is a cardiac and smooth muscle-specific expressed transcriptional coactivator of SRF and is sufficient and necessary for smooth muscle gene expression. Here, we show that myocardin induces the acetylation of nucleosomal histones surrounding SRF-binding sites in the control regions of smooth muscle genes. The promyogenic activity of myocardin is enhanced by p300, a histone acetyltransferase that associates with the transcription activation domain of myocardin. Conversely, class II histone deacetylases interact with a domain of myocardin distinct from the p300-binding domain and suppress smooth muscle gene activation by myocardin. These findings point to myocardin as a nexus for positive and negative regulation of smooth muscle gene expression by changes in chromatin acetylation.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 364-376 |
Number of pages | 13 |
Journal | Molecular and cellular biology |
Volume | 25 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jan 2005 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Molecular Biology
- Cell Biology