A gene regulatory network in mouse embryonic stem cells

Abstract

We analyze new and existing expression and transcription factor-binding data to characterize gene regulatory relations in mouse ES cells (ESC). In addition to confirming the key roles of Oct4, Sox2, and Nanog, our analysis identifies several genes, such as Esrrb, Stat3, Tcf7, Sall4, and LRH-1, as statistically significant coregulators. The regulatory interactions among 15 core regulators are used to construct a gene regulatory network in ESC. The network encapsulates extensive cross-regulations among the core regulators, highlights how they may control epigenetic processes, and reveals the surprising roles of nuclear receptors. Our analysis also provides information on the regulation of a large number of putative target genes of the network.