Multiple transcription factor elements collaborate with estrogen receptor α to activate an inducible estrogen response element in the NKG2E gene

Abstract

Estrogen receptors (ERs) regulate transcription by interacting with regulatory elements in target genes. However, known ER regulatory elements cannot explain the expression profiles of genes activated by estradiol (E 2) and selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs). We previously showed that the killer cell lectin-like receptor (NKG2E) gene is regulated by E2, tamoxifen, and raloxifene. Here we used the NKG2E gene as a model to investigate the mechanism whereby target genes are regulated by E 2 and SERMs with ERα. The ER regulatory element in the NKG2E promoter was mapped to the -1825 and -1686 region. Full activation of the NKG2E promoter required the collaboration between a transcript..