Regulation of GTP cyclohydrolase I expression by orphan receptor Nurr1 in cell culture and in vivo.

Nurr1 is an orphan nuclear transcription factor essential for the terminal differentiation of dopamine (DA) neurons in the ventral midbrain (VM). To identify the Nurr1-target genes, we carried out microarray and quantitative real-time PCR analyses of Nurr1 null and wild-type mice in VM at embryonic day (E) 12.5 and shortly after birth (P0).

Active repression by thyroid hormone receptor splicing variant alpha2 requires specific regulatory elements in the context of native triiodothyronine-regulated gene promoters.

Structural requirements for the inhibitory action of thyroid hormone receptor splicing variant alpha2 (TR alpha2) on T3/TRbeta1-mediated transactivation were investigated in native promoters of two T3-regulated genes: the brain-specific myelin basic protein (MBP) and the housekeeping malic enzyme (ME). T3/TRbeta1 transactivation of MBP256-chloramphenicol acetyl transferase (CAT) and ME315-CAT constructs was inhibited and unaffected by TR alpha2, respectively. In electrophoretic mobility shift assays, TR alpha2 bound MBP-thyroid response element (TRE) as a monomer but failed to interact with ME-TRE.

Differential 9-cis-retinoic acid-dependent transcriptional activation by murine retinoid X receptor alpha (RXR alpha) and RXR beta. Role of cell type and RXR domains.

The 9-cis-retinoic acid (9cRA)-inducible enhancer of the rat cellular retinol-binding protein type II gene (CRBP II) was shown to be differentially regulated by the murine retinoid X receptor alpha (RXR alpha) as compared with RXR beta. Transient transfection assays performed in NIH 3T3 fibroblast cells demonstrated that RXR alpha yielded a high level of 9cRA-dependent transcription of a reporter gene linked to the CRBP II enhancer, when compared with RXR beta. This effect was cell type-dependent, since both receptors elicited comparable transcriptional activation of the same reporter in P19 embryonal carcinoma cells.

The N-terminal region (A/B) of rat thyroid hormone receptors alpha 1, beta 1, but not beta 2 contains a strong thyroid hormone-dependent transactivation function.

In this study we have investigated the role of the N-terminal region of thyroid hormone receptors (TRs) in thyroid hormone (TH)-dependent transactivation of a thymidine kinase promoter containing TH response elements composed either of a direct repeat or an inverted palindrome. Comparison of rat TR beta 1 with TR beta 2 provides an excellent model since they share identical sequences except for their N termini. Our results show that TR beta 2 is an inefficient TH-dependent transcriptional activator.

Divergent effects of 9-cis-retinoic acid receptor on positive and negative thyroid hormone receptor-dependent gene expression.

The thyroid hormone (TH)-inducible expression of some genes has recently been shown to be enhanced by 9-cis-retinoic acid (9-cis-RA) receptor (RXR). This effect appears to be at least partially elicited by the ability of RXR to heterodimerize with TH receptor (THR) and enhance its binding to the cis-acting thyroid hormone responsive elements (TREs) found within those genes. However, whether RXR beta enhances TH/THR-mediated transactivation of all Tre-containing genes, and if RXR has any effect on TH-dependent negative regulation are not known.