In Vivo and In Vitro Analysis of an ^Aγ-Globin Gene Silencer in Human β-Yac Transgenic Mice.

Autonomous silencing of gene expression is one mechanism operative in the control of human β-like globin gene switching and is best exemplified by the ε-globin gene. Experiments using variously truncated ^Aγ-globin genes linked to LCR sequences suggested that a region of the ^Aγ-globin gene between −730 to −378 relative to the mRNA CAP site may function as an adult stage-specific silencer element. A 5.4 Kb marked ^Aγ-globin gene (^Aγ^m) inserted between LCR 5′HS1 and the ε-globin gene in a β-YAC (^Aγ^m 5′ ε β-YAC) was silenced in transgenic mice during adult definitive erythropoiesis, even in the absence of an adult β-globin gene. In contrast, when a marked β-globin gene (β^m) was inserted in this same location in another β-YAC (β^m 5′ ε β-YAC), the β^m-globin gene was expressed throughout ontogeny. From these data we concluded that: 1) any gene located near the LCR will be strongly expressed throughout ontogeny, unless some gene-specific silencing mechanism exists, 2) competition between the γ- and β-globin genes for interaction with the LCR is not the exclusive mechanism controlling γ- to β-globin gene switching, and 3) that the ^Aγ^m-globin gene was autonomously silenced. A -730 to -378 deletion of the ^Aγ^m-globin gene was introduced into the ^Aγ^m 5′ ε β-YAC via homologous recombination to produce a Δ1s ^Aγ^m 5′ ε β-YAC. This YAC was microinjected and six founders were obtained. Four transgenic lines were established carrying at least one full-length β-globin locus and two were established that lacked the adult β-globin gene. All founders containing an intact β-globin gene expressed the Δ1s ^Aγ^m-globin during adult erythropoiesis (45% – 122% relative to human β-globin expression). In one line examined in detail, the Δ1s ^Aγ^m-globin gene was expressed in the embryonic yolk sac, fetal liver, and adult blood. ε-globin gene expression was not detected in the embryonic yolk sac and expression of the normally located γ-globin genes was not observed at any developmental stage. β-globin gene expression was observed in the fetal liver and adult blood, although its expression was decreased. To further delineate the function of the Δ1s fragment, transient transfection assays to test silencer function and protein-DNA interaction assays were performed. Silencer activity of the352 bp Δ1s fragment was examined using a series of pGL2 luciferase reporter plasmids that were synthesized to include the Δ1s fragment; these were electroporated into various cells. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays (EMSAs) and DNAse I footprinting were employed to begin assessment of protein binding within the Δ1s fragment. A 50 bp DNA fragment spanning −713 to −664 of the Δ1s element was used in EMSAs; DNA binding activity was observed in K562 nuclear extracts. These preliminary data suggest that the −730 to −378 γ-globin gene silencer binds a repressor protein complex.