{"id":6555,"date":"2016-02-11T20:00:13","date_gmt":"2016-02-11T19:00:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/news.embl.de\/?p=6555"},"modified":"2024-03-25T10:34:02","modified_gmt":"2024-03-25T09:34:02","slug":"1602-heart-transcription-factors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/news\/science\/1602-heart-transcription-factors\/","title":{"rendered":"True Love"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">By Dana Smith<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Scientists at the Gladstone Institutes and EMBL Heidelberg have discovered that three transcription factors \u2014 proteins that turn genes on or off \u2014 interact with each other and the genome to influence how a heart forms in an embryo. Without these protein interactions, severe congenital heart defects can occur. By understanding how the transcription factors work together during heart development, researchers may discover new ways to treat heart disease.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the study, published today in <em>Cell<\/em>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.embl.de\/research\/units\/scb\/mueller_christoph\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Christoph M\u00fcller<\/a>\u2019s group at EMBL Heidelberg determined the 3D structure of transcription factors TBX5 and NKX2-5, bound to DNA. \u201cThe crystal structure critically shows the interaction between the two transcription factors and how they influence one another\u2019s binding to a specific stretch of DNA,\u201d says M\u00fcller. \u201cIn some other parts of the genome, we\u2019re still not sure how this would work \u2013 but it would be fascinating to find out!&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">For more information about the effects of these particular interactions on heart development, read the <a href=\"https:\/\/gladstone.org\/about-us\/press-releases\/true-love-how-transcription-factors-interact-create-heart\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Gladstone Institutes\u2019 press release<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>How transcription factors interact to create a heart<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":6574,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,17591],"tags":[29,55,32,43,35],"embl_taxonomy":[18861,9796,19341],"class_list":["post-6555","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-science","category-science-technology","tag-crystallography","tag-development","tag-health","tag-heidelberg","tag-structural-biology","embl_taxonomy-christoph-muller","embl_taxonomy-embl-heidelberg","embl_taxonomy-muller-group"],"acf":{"article_intro":"<p>Key proteins involved in gene expression depend on each other when forming a heart in an embryo, but, if left alone, they start to run amok.<\/p>\n","related_links":[{"link_description":"Gladstone Institutes' press release","link_url":"https:\/\/gladstone.org\/about-us\/press-releases\/true-love-how-transcription-factors-interact-create-heart"},{"link_description":"The Gladstone Institutes","link_url":"https:\/\/gladstone.org\/"}],"article_sources":[{"source_description":"<p>Luna-Zurita L\u00a0<em>et al. Cell<\/em>, published online 11 February 2016. DOI:\u00a010.1016\/j.cell.2016.01.004<\/p>\n","source_link_url":"http:\/\/www.cell.com\/cell\/abstract\/S0092-8674(16)00005-2"}],"vf_locked":false,"featured":false,"color":"#007B53","link_color":"#fff","show_featured_image":false,"in_this_article":false,"youtube_url":"","mp4_url":"","video_caption":"","press_contact":"None","translations":false},"embl_taxonomy_terms":[{"uuid":"a:2:{i:0;s:36:\"4428d1fd-441a-4d6d-a1c5-5dcf5665f213\";i:1;s:36:\"63333cc0-a357-4f7e-b1d5-43dc9e27227f\";}","parents":[],"name":["Christoph M\u00fcller"],"slug":"christoph-muller","description":"Who &gt; Christoph M\u00fcller"},{"uuid":"a:3:{i:0;s:36:\"b14d3f13-5670-44fb-8970-e54dfd9c921a\";i:1;s:36:\"89e00fee-87f4-482e-a801-4c3548bb6a58\";i:2;s:36:\"ab46b6d4-71d8-49f8-b2f4-b326d4c8ea4e\";}","parents":[],"name":["EMBL Heidelberg"],"slug":"embl-heidelberg","description":"Where &gt; All EMBL sites &gt; EMBL Heidelberg"},{"uuid":"a:3:{i:0;s:36:\"302cfdf7-365b-462a-be65-82c7b783ebf7\";i:1;s:36:\"bd910dd7-0cda-4618-8bfa-d37fbda8438e\";i:2;s:36:\"9e7c6e04-1ed3-45c2-a25a-6ad53d702521\";}","parents":[],"name":["M\u00fcller Group"],"slug":"muller-group","description":"What &gt; 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