C. Murphy et al., ACTIVE REPRESSION OF MAJOR HISTOCOMPATIBILITY COMPLEX CLASS-I GENES IN A HUMAN NEUROBLASTOMA CELL-LINE, The Journal of biological chemistry, 271(48), 1996, pp. 30992-30999
Human neuronal cells express neither major histocompatibility complex
(MHC) class I RNA nor cell surface molecules but can be induced to do
so by various cytokines, In the present studies, we report that expres
sion of MHC class I in a neuroblastoma cell line, CHP-126, is actively
repressed. This repression is mediated by the combined effects of a s
eries of upstream silencer elements. Removal of the silencers reveals
not only an active promoter element but also the presence of an active
enhancer, Four silencers have been identified and shown to have disti
nct sequences, binding factors, and patterns of function, One element
is located between -724 and -697 base pairs (bp) and corresponds to a
silencer involved in tissue-specific regulation of class I gene expres
sion. Three additional elements occur between -503 and -402 bp, One of
these corresponds to a c-jun, responsive element. Neither of the rema
ining elements corresponds to DNA sequences known to regulate expressi
on of other genes, These data demonstrate that MHC class I expression
normally is actively repressed in neuronal cells and suggest a model o
f rapid and specific triggering of class I in neuronal cells in respon
se to infection.