During pancreas development, both the exocrine and endocrine lineages differentiate from a common pool of progenitor cells with similarities to mature pancreatic duct cells. A small set of transcription factors, including Tcf2, Onecut1, and Foxa2, has been identified in these pancreatic progenitor cells. The Sry/HMG box transcription factor Sox9 is also expressed in the early pancreatic epithelium and is required for normal pancreatic exocrine and endocrine development in humans. In this study, we found Sox9 in mice specifically expressed with the other progenitor transcription factors in both pancreatic progenitor cells and duct cells in the adult pancreas. Sox9 directly bound to all three genes in vitro and in intact cells, and regulated their expression. In turn, both Foxa2 and Tcf2 regulated Sox9 expression, demonstrating feedback circuits between these genes. Furthermore, Sox9 activated the expression of the proendocrine factor Neurogenin3, which also depends on the other members of the progenitor transcription network. These studies indicate that Sox9 plays a dual role in pancreatic progenitor cells: both maintaining a stable transcriptional network and supporting the programs by which these cells differentiate into distinct lineages.

*Pancreatic islet cells and neurons share common functions and similar ontogenies, but originate in different germ layers. To determine whether ectoderm-derived cells contribute instructive signals to the developing endoderm-derived pancreas, we defined the chronology of migration and differentiation of neural crest cells in the pancreas, and tested their role in the development of the islets. The homeodomain transcription factor Phox2b marks the neural precursors from the neural crest that colonize the gut to form the enteric nervous system. In the embryonic mouse pancreas, we found Phox2b expressed briefly together with Sox10 along the epithelial-mesenchymal border at E12.5 in cells derived from the neural crest. Downregulation of Phox2b shortly thereafter was dependent upon Nkx2.2 expressed in the adjacent pancreatic epithelium. In Phox2b -/-embryos, neurons and glia did not develop in the pancreas, and Nkx2.2 expression was markedly upregulated in the epithelium. In addition, the number and replication rate of insulin-expressing beta-cells increased in the Phox2b -/-mice. We conclude that, during pancreatic development, Phox2b and Nkx2.2 form a non-cell-autonomous feedback loop that links the neural crest with the pancreatic epithelium, regulates the size of the beta-cell population, and thereby impacts insulin-secretory capacity and energy homeostasis.

In various mammalian species, including humans, water restriction leads to an acute increase in urinary sodium excretion. This process, known as dehydration natriuresis, helps prevent further accentuation of hypernatremia and the accompanying rise in extracellular tonicity. Serum-and glucocorticoid-inducible kinase (Sgk1), which is expressed in the renal medulla, is regulated by extracellular tonicity. However, the mechanism of its regulation and the physiological role of hypertonicity-induced SGK1 gene expression remain unclear. Here, we identified a tonicity-responsive enhancer (TonE) upstream of the rat Sgk1 transcriptional start site. The transcription factor NFAT5 associated with TonE in a tonicity-dependent fashion in cultured rat renal medullary cells, and selective blockade of NFAT5 activity resulted in suppression of the osmotic induction of the Sgk1 promoter. In vivo, water restriction of rats or mice led to increased urine osmolality, increased Sgk1 expression, increased expression of the type A natriuretic peptide receptor (NPR-A), and dehydration natriuresis. In cultured rat renal medullary cells, siRNA-mediated Sgk1 knockdown blocked the osmotic induction of natriuretic peptide receptor 1 (Npr1) gene expression. Furthermore, Npr1 -/-mice were resistant to dehydration natriuresis, which suggests that Sgk1-dependent activation of the NPR-A pathway may contribute to this response. Collectively, these findings define a specific mechanistic pathway for the osmotic regulation of Sgk1 gene expression and suggest that Sgk1 may play an important role in promoting the physiological response of the kidney to elevations in extracellular tonicity. IntroductionPersistent hypertonicity, typically reflecting a high extracellular sodium concentration, stresses mammalian cells due to the ensuing osmotic efflux of water that shrinks the cells and concentrates their contents. Under most conditions, the concentration of extracellular sodium in mammals is controlled primarily through regulation of water metabolism. As extracellular sodium and plasma tonicity rise, the thirst mechanism is activated, and secretion of the neurohypophyseal hormone vasopressin into plasma increases. Vasopressin binds to its cognate receptors in the collecting duct of the kidney, resulting in increased water retention.Following short-term water restriction, several mammals demonstrate an acute increase in urinary sodium excretion that is independent of changes in water metabolism. This response, termed dehydration natriuresis (1-11), plays an important role in preventing further accentuation of hypernatremia and the accompanying rise in extracellular tonicity. A similar natriuresis is seen following infusion of hypertonic saline (12). Investigations to date have suggested a role for central versus peripheral osmoreceptors and blood-borne versus neural effectors in contributing to dehydration-induced natriuresis; however, the precise mechanism(s) underlying this natriuresis remains undefined.

Major histocompatibility complex class II (MHC-II) genes are regulated in a B-cell-specific and gamma interferon-inducible manner. Conserved upstream sequences (CUS) in their compact promoters bind nuclear factor Y (NFY) and regulatory factor X (RFX) complexes. These DNA-bound proteins form a platform that attracts the class II transactivator, which initiates and elongates MHC-II transcription. In this report, we analyzed the complex assembly of these DNA-bound proteins. First, we found that NFY can interact with RFX in cells. In particular, NFYA and NFYC bound RFXANK/B in vitro. Next, RFX5 formed dimers in vivo and in vitro. Within a leucine-rich stretch N-terminal to the DNA-binding domain in RFX5, the leucine at position 66 was found to be critical for this self-association. Mutant RFX5 proteins that could not form dimers also did not support the formation of higher-order DNA-protein complexes on CUS in vitro or MHC-II transcription in vivo. We conclude that the MHC-II transcriptional platform begins to assemble off CUS and then binds DNA via multiple, spatially constrained interactions. These findings offer one explanation of why in the Bare Lymphocyte Syndrome, which is a congenital severe combined immunodeficiency, MHC-II promoters are bare when any subunit of RFX is mutated or missing.Major histocompatibility complex class II (MHC-II) determinants play a central role in the selection of the T-cell receptor repertoire and in the initiation, propagation, and duration of antigen-specific immune responses by CD4-positive T cells (9, 45). They are expressed constitutively on the surface of mature B cells, dendritic, and thymic epithelial cells and can be induced on many somatic cells by gamma interferon (IFN-␥) (3,35,39). Since the expression of MHC-II genes is critical for the function of the immune system, it is not surprising that the congenital lack of these determinants results in an autosomal and recessive severe combined immunodeficiency called the Bare Lymphocyte Syndrome (BLS) (35). Moreover, the inappropriate expression of MHC-II determinants on target tissues facilitates organ-specific autoimmunity (5).The expression of the classical, polymorphic MHC-II determinants (DR, DQ, and DP) and the accessory molecules (DM, Ii) involved in antigen processing and presentation is regulated at the transcriptional level (3, 35, 39). They are transcribed from compact promoters, which contain conserved upstream sequences (CUS) from positions Ϫ135 to Ϫ60 (DRA promoter) (4, 40, 41) and variable promoter proximal sequences that lack a functional TATA box (2, 26). From the 5Ј to the 3Ј direction, CUS contain S, X, and Y boxes which bind different protein complexes to mediate B-cell-specific and IFN-␥-inducible expression of MHC-II genes (3,35,39). Additionally, the spacing between CUS cannot be varied, suggesting that transacting factors interact with each other and DNA for the formation of the MHC-II enhanceosome (13,42,43).The S and the X boxes contain palindromic sequences: both bind the regulatory factor X (RFX) (...