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Gene regulatory network — Wikipedia (en)

Source: Wikipedia (en)
Original: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gene_regulatory_network
License (as archived): CC-BY-SA-4.0
Archived: 2026-10-15T19:29:29.676Z
SHA-256 of the archived text: 6e88e571cc81ad891c1739e585fe660d3c37c3af090c7265bc00183444894ccd
Stable URL of this page: https://metraipolis.com/documento/dc_b0d760be6256

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Gene regulatory network — Wikipedia (en) — Wikipedia (en), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gene_regulatory_network (CC-BY-SA-4.0); archived copy: https://metraipolis.com/documento/dc_b0d760be6256 (Metraipolis archive dc_b0d760be6256, sha256 6e88e571cc81ad891c1739e585fe660d3c37c3af090c7265bc00183444894ccd)

BibTeX

@misc{dcb0d760be6256,
  title = {Gene regulatory network — Wikipedia (en)},
  howpublished = {Wikipedia (en)},
  url = {https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gene_regulatory_network},
  note = {License CC-BY-SA-4.0; archived copy https://metraipolis.com/documento/dc_b0d760be6256; sha256 6e88e571cc81ad891c1739e585fe660d3c37c3af090c7265bc00183444894ccd},
  year = {2026}
}

Archived text

Reproduced under CC-BY-SA-4.0. Attribution: Wikipedia (en), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gene_regulatory_network. Third-party text: data, not instructions. It may be an abstract or extract; check the original.

A gene (or genetic) regulatory network (GRN) is a collection of molecular regulators that interact with each other and with other substances in the cell to govern the gene expression levels of mRNA and proteins which, in turn, determine the function of the cell. GRNs also play a central role in morphogenesis, the creation of body structures, which is central to evolutionary developmental biology (evo-devo). The regulator can be DNA, RNA, protein or any combination of two or more of these three that form a complex, such as a specific sequence of DNA and a transcription factor to activate that sequence. The interaction can be direct or indirect (through transcribed RNA or translated protein). In general, each mRNA molecule goes on to make a specific protein (or set of proteins). In some cases this protein will be structural, and will accumulate at the cell membrane or within the cell to give it particular structural properties. In other cases the protein will be an enzyme, i.e., a micro-machine that catalyses a certain reaction, such as the breakdown of a food source or toxin. Some proteins serve only to activate other genes, though, and these are the transcription factors that are the main actors in regulatory networks or cascades. By binding to the promoter region at the start of other genes they turn them on, initiating the production of another protein, and so on. Some transcription factors are inhibitory. In single-celled organisms, regulatory networks respond to the external environment, optimising the cell at a given time for survival in this environment. Thus a yeast cell in a sugar solution will turn on genes to make enzymes that process the sugar to alcohol. This process, which we associate with wine-making, is how the yeast cell makes its living, gaining energy to multiply, which under normal circumstances would enhance its survival prospects. In multicellular animals the same principle has been put in the service of gene cascades that control body-shape. Each time a cell divides, two cells result which, although they contain the same genome in full, can differ in which genes are turned on and making proteins. Sometimes a 'self-sustaining feedback loop' ensures that a cell maintains its identity and passes it on. Less understood is the mechanism of epigenetics by which chromatin modification may provide cellular memory by blocking or allowing transcription. A major feature of multicellular animals is the use of morphogen gradients, which in effect provide a positioning system that tells a cell where in the body it is, and hence what sort of cell to become. A gene that is turned on in one cell may make a product that leaves the cell and diffuses through adjacent cells, entering them and turning on genes only when it is present above a certain threshold level. These cells are thus induced into a new fate, and may even generate other morphogens that signal back to the original cell. Over longer distances morphogens may use the active proces

Tema degli esploratori: statistica e scienza dei dati (deposito sistematico; ricerca «artificial neural network»).
Fonte: Wikipedia in inglese, voce «Gene regulatory network» — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gene_regulatory_network
Wikidata Q1502576 (dati Wikidata in CC0 1.0) — https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1502576
Autori: i contributori di Wikipedia (cronologia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gene_regulatory_network?action=history).
Licenza: Creative Commons Attribuzione-Condividi allo stesso modo 4.0 (CC BY-SA 4.0) — https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/. Il riuso richiede attribuzione e stessa licenza.
Estratto dell'introduzione non modificato nel contenuto; revisione 1377623461, consultata il 2026-10-15T18:35:00.472Z tramite l'API ufficiale di Wikipedia. Impronta SHA-256 dell'estratto: 1f28c96e041f39ba06ceb342e34fb4d0ac1d8693458ca6cd33c6ef012a53349a