Mapping the Core Promoter Element of UOL Gene Encoded by Herpes Simplex Virus Open Access

Abstract

The activity of a gene promoter directly influences the level of gene expression. The activity of a promoter is highly regulated on both the epigenetic and DNA sequence levels, and regulatory mechanisms can be very complex. In order to understand the regulation of expression for a particular gene, identifying the key promoter elements in the promoter of that gene is an important step. The UOL ("Upstream of Latency-associated-transcript") gene of the Herpes Simplex Virus 1 (HSV-1) is expressed in acute infections and as a late gene in infected neuronal cells after reactivation of the latent HSV-1. The goal of my research is to map the core active region, and the key promoter elements of the UOL promoter. In this paper, I describe the use of luciferase assays to determine localized promoter regions of interest for the UOL gene in various cell lines. Previous studies have mapped the UOL promoter to a certain region and our results indicate different subregions within that region that may show enhancing and silencing activity, respectively. These results provide a basis for future analyses that will help determine the specific transcription factors and their binding sites of the UOL promoter. These transcription factors and binding sites could be future drug targets against the HSV-1 reactivation virulent phenotype.

Table of Contents

Intoduction...1

Figure 1...3

Materials and Methods...6

Figure 2...7
Figure 3...8

Results and Discussion...12

Figure 4...13
Figure 5...14
Figure 6...16
Figure 7...17
Figure 8...17
Figure 9...17
Figure 10...18
Figure 11...19
Figure 12...19
Figure 13...20
Figure 14...22
Figure 15...23
Figure 16...24

References...27

Appendix A; Figures...30

About this Honors Thesis

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School	Emory College
Department	Biology
Degree	BS
Submission	Honors Thesis
Language	English
Research Field	Biology, Genetics Biology, Molecular Biology, Microbiology
Keyword	UOL Promoter Herpes Simplex Virus
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor	Perng, Guey Chuen 'Oscar', Emory University
Committee Members	Antia, Rustom, Emory University Tse, Margaret, Stokes, Darrell R, Emory University

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