Cooperative transcriptional activation of ATP-binding cassette sterol transporters ABCG5 and ABCG8 genes by nuclear receptors including Liver-X-Receptor

The ATP-binding cassette transporters ABCG5 and ABCG8 formheterodimers that limit absorption of dietary sterols in theintestine and promote cholesterol elimination from the bodythrough hepatobiliary secretion. To identify cis-regulatoryelements of the two genes, we have cloned and analyzedtwenty-three evolutionary conserved region (ECR) fragmentsusing the CMV-luciferase reporter system in HepG2 cells. TwoECRs were found to be responsive to the Liver-X-Receptor (LXR).Through elaborate deletion studies, regions containing putativeLXREs were identified and the binding of LXRα wasdemonstrated by EMSA and ChIP assay. When the LXREs wereinserted upstream of the intergenic promoter, synergisticactivation by LXRα/RXRα in combination with GATA4, HNF4α,and LRH-1, which had been shown to bind to the intergenicregion, was observed. In conclusion, we have identified twoLXREs in ABCG5/ABCG8 genes for the first time and proposethat these LXREs, especially in the ECR20, play major roles inregulating these genes. [BMB Reports 2013; 46(6): 322-327