Specialized mechanisms ensure proper expression of critically important genes such as those specifying cell identity or conferring protection from environmental stress. Investigations of the heat shock response have been critical in elucidating basic concepts of transcriptional control. Recent studies demonstrate that in response to thermal stress, heat shock-responsive genes associate with high levels of transcriptional activators and coactivators and those in yeast intensely interact across and between chromosomes, coalescing into condensates. In mammalian cells, cell identity genes that are regulated by super-enhancers (SEs) are also densely occupied by transcriptional machinery that form phase-separated condensates. We suggest that the stress-remodeled yeast nucleome bears functional and structural resemblance to mammalian SEs, and will reveal fundamental mechanisms of gene control by transcriptional condensates.

专门的机制确保至关重要的基因的正确表达，例如那些指定细胞身份或赋予免受环境压力保护的基因。热休克反应的研究对于阐明转录控制的基本概念至关重要。最近的研究表明，为了应对热应激，热休克反应基因与高水平的转录激活剂和共激活剂相关，并且酵母中的转录激活剂和共激活剂在染色体之间和染色体之间强烈相互作用，合并成凝聚物。在哺乳动物细胞中，受超级增强子（SE）调节的细胞识别基因也被形成相分离凝聚物的转录机器密集占据。我们认为，应激重塑的酵母核组与哺乳动物 SE 具有功能和结构相似性，并将揭示转录凝体控制基因的基本机制。