The inner nuclear envelope as a transcription factor resting place

Just as people head to the beaches for a well-deserved rest, accumulating evidence suggests that transcription factors take similar 'vacations' at the nuclear envelope. Recent studies indicate that the periphery of the nucleus provides a platform for sequestering transcription factors away from chromatin. Several transcriptional regulators, operating in different signal-transduction pathways, have been found to interact physically with components of the inner nuclear membrane. In general, this association seems to restrict access to their target genes and limit their transactivation or transrepression abilities. The mechanisms of inner nuclear membrane association are diverse, and include regulated associations with the nuclear lamina and integral membrane proteins. Together, these findings indicate that the inside of the nuclear envelope functions as a resting place for transcription factors and suggest a more direct role for the nuclear envelope in gene regulation than previously anticipated.