Common chromatin architecture, common chromatin remodeling, and common transcription kinetics of Adr1-dependent genes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The chromatin structure of several Saccharomyces cerevisiae ADR1-dependent genes was comparatively analyzed in vivo in order to evaluate the role of promoter architecture in transcriptional control. In repressing conditions (high glucose) a nucleosome particle always obstructs the TATA box, immediately adjacent to an upstream-located nucleosome-free region containing a cluster of Adr1 binding sites. Upon derepression the TATA box-containing nucleosome is destabilized according to a mechanism shared by all of the genes studied. The transcription factor Adr1 is always required for the observed chromatin remodeling. mRNA accumulation of all of the genes analyzed is strongly delayed in the absence of the acetyltransferase Gcn5 and is decreased in the presence of a temperature-sensitive Esa1 mutant. The results suggest that a defined promoter chromatin structure, controlled by DNA conformational features, is relevant for the activation of coregulated genes.