Synonyms
Bipartite GAL4/UAS expression system
Definition
The GAL4/UAS system refers to the use of yeast proteins which interact to induce the expression of genes from any organism in a tissue and temporal-specific manner.
Characteristics
The GAL4/UAS System
There are many tools available when using the fruitfly, Drosophila melanogaster, a model organism highly amenable to genetic analysis. One particular tool is the GAL4/UAS system that allows for the expression of genes from any organism in a tissue and temporal-specific manner. This has led to the identification of conserved genes involved in apoptosis [1], tyrosine kinase signaling [2] and neurodegenerative diseases.
GAL4 is a yeast protein that regulates genes induced by galactose. GAL4 binds to 17 basepair sites referred to as the Upstream Activating Sequences (UAS) in order to activate the GAL10 and GAL1 target genes. In 1993, Brand and Perrimon used the ability of GAL4 to activate transcription from the UAS element in Drosophila...
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References
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Sonnenfeld, M.J. (2009). GAL4/UAS Expression System. In: Binder, M.D., Hirokawa, N., Windhorst, U. (eds) Encyclopedia of Neuroscience. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-29678-2_1904
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-29678-2_1904
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Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
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Online ISBN: 978-3-540-29678-2
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