Justin M. answered • 04/16/21
Patient Science and Math Tutor Experience: 3+ Years
Non-coding segments of DNA have multiple regulatory functions - listed below are 4 examples.
1) Promoters provide binding sites for the protein machinery that carries out transcription. Promoters are typically found just ahead of the gene on the DNA strand.
2) Enhancers provide binding sites for proteins that help activate transcription. Enhancers can be found on the DNA strand before or after the gene they control, sometimes far away.
3) Silencers provide binding sites for proteins that repress transcription. Like enhancers, silencers can be found before or after the gene they control and can be some distance away on the DNA strand.
4) Insulators provide binding sites for proteins that control transcription in a number of ways. Some prevent enhancers from aiding in transcription (enhancer-blocker insulators). Others prevent structural changes in the DNA that repress gene activity (barrier insulators). Some insulators can function as both an enhancer blocker and a barrier.
