Human Microfibrillar-Associated Protein 4 (MFAP4) Gene Promoter: A TATA-Less Promoter That Is Regulated by Retinol and Coenzyme Q10 in Human Fibroblast Cells

• Main Authors: Ying-Ju Lin, An-Ni Chen, Xi Jiang Yin, Chunxiang Li, Chih-Chien Lin
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2020-11-01
• Series: International Journal of Molecular Sciences
• Subjects: elastic fibers; microfibrillar-associated protein 4 (MFAP4); TATA-less promoter; fibroblast cells
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/21/21/8392
• ISSN: 1661-6596; 1422-0067

Elastic fibers are one of the major structural components of the extracellular matrix (ECM) in human connective tissues. Among these fibers, microfibrillar-associated protein 4 (MFAP4) is one of the most important microfibril-associated glycoproteins. MFAP4 has been found to bind with elastin microfibrils and interact directly with fibrillin-1, and then aid in elastic fiber formation. However, the regulations of the human <i>MFAP4</i> gene are not so clear. Therefore, in this study, we firstly aimed to analyze and identify the promoter region of the human <i>MFAP4</i> gene. The results indicate that the human <i>MFAP4</i> promoter is a TATA-less promoter with tissue- and species-specific properties. Moreover, the promoter can be up-regulated by retinol and coenzyme Q10 (coQ10) in Detroit 551 cells.