Distant regulatory DNA elements that increase or decrease transcription via looping to the promoter.
Enhancers can be thousands of base pairs from the gene and act in either orientation. DNA looping brings bound activators to the promoter through Mediator. Tissue-specific enhancers allow genes to be used in different places at different times.
Mutations in enhancers cause disease, such as limb malformations.
Distant regulatory DNA elements that increase or decrease transcription via looping to the promoter.
Enhancers and Silencers is one of the 52 topics in Molecular Biology. It is rated Intermediate, so it suits learners who already know the core vocabulary. Related topics in this area include Mediator Complex, Chromosome Territories, Transcription Factors.
A limb enhancer of the Shh gene lies about a million base pairs away.
Work through the Beginner topics in Molecular Biology first, such as Central Dogma, DNA Replication, Base Pairing, then return to Enhancers and Silencers. Intermediate topics assume the Beginner vocabulary.
The closest topics to Enhancers and Silencers are Mediator Complex, Chromosome Territories, Transcription Factors, Promoter. Comparing them side by side is a good way to see how the ideas connect.
Read the summary and the in-depth section, then use the quick check on the interactive lesson for Enhancers and Silencers. To practise the whole of Molecular Biology, use the Molecular Biology quiz.
Enhancers and Silencers: Distant regulatory DNA elements that increase or decrease transcription via looping to the promoter. Mediator Complex: A large multi-protein assembly that links enhancer-bound transcription factors to RNA polymerase II. Read both side by side and note what each one explains.
First, read the summary and write the definition in your own words. Second, read the in-depth section and note any example. Third, compare it with Mediator Complex and explain the difference aloud. Finally, take the Molecular Biology quiz and come back to this page for any question you miss.
A large multi-protein assembly that links enhancer-bound transcription factors to RNA polymerase II.
🧫 Molecular BiologyIndividual chromosomes occupy distinct regions of the nucleus, influencing genome organisation and expression.
🧫 Molecular BiologyProteins that bind specific DNA sequences to turn genes on or off.
🧫 Molecular BiologyA DNA sequence where RNA polymerase and transcription factors bind to start transcription of a gene.
🧫 Molecular Biology