Characterization of physical interactions between the Drosophila insulator binding protein BEAF and transcription-associated proteins

promoters cooperatively with adjacent, promoter-proximal BEAF. Only ROW and the FACT subunit SSRP communicated with BEAF from a distance, and only ROW exhibited long-range interaction with BEAF in Hi-C data. Our results provide evidence for three mechanisms by which promoter-proximal BEAF might facilitate gene activation. First, it might affect promoter chromatin accessibility by recruiting chromatin proteins like FACT. Second, consistent with the model of housekeeping gene regulation by promoter-proximal elements, BEAF might cooperate with adjacent interacting transcription factors for promoter activation. Third, a subset of interacting transcription factors, including ROW and Sry-δ, might interact with BEAF from a distance, modifying the traditional paradigm of local regulation of housekeeping genes.