New insights in genomics of the human nucleolus
WASHINGTON: Saturday, March 27, 2010 Spanish and German scientists have offered insights into the 3-D genomics of the human nucleolus.
The research, conducted by researchers from the University of Regensburg and the Ludwig Maximilians University in Germany and the Centro de Investigación Príncipe Felipe in Spain, sheds new light on the functional organization of human genetic material.
Genome Biology
8 July 2008
Background
In recent years, the molecular underpinnings of the long observed resemblance between neoplastic and immature tissue have begun to emerge. Genome-wide transcriptional profiling has revealed similar gene expression signatures in several tumor types and early developmental stages of their tissue of origin. However, it remains unclear whether such a relationship is a universal feature of malignancy, whether heterogeneities exist in the developmental component of different tumor types and to which degree the resemblance between cancer and development is a tissue-specific phenomenon.
Applications Broaden for Epitope Mapping
Basic Tool Has Copious Uses in Development of Vaccines and Protein Therapeutics
(From Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News)
Epitope mapping, initially a basic-science tool for understanding the 3-D interactions between antigens and antibodies, is now being extensively employed to develop new therapeutics. In vaccine technology, especially, scientists in academia and biotech firms have mobilized epitope discovery based on the use of high-throughput antibody screening for rational vaccine design.
(Full Article)
Coordinate Gene Regulation during Hematopoiesis Is Related to Genomic Organization
PLoS Biology
Author Summary:
How are genomes—and the chromosomes that comprise them—organized in the eukaryotic nucleus? This long-standing question in cell biology has gained renewed interest due to observations that gene regulation is correlated with the nonrandom distribution of gene loci linearly along chromosomes and spatially within the nucleus. We have used an in vitro model of cellular differentiation to test the hypothesis that there is an inherent organization of the genome related to coordinate gene regulation. Our analysis reveals that during the differentiation of a murine hematopoietic (blood-forming cell) progenitor to derived cell types, co-regulated genes have a marked tendency to be proximal along chromosomes in the form of clusters (of two and three genes) and large-scale domains. Overall gene expression is also spatially proximal, with a pronounced concentration in the nuclear center. The chromosomes themselves parallel this organization of gene activity, with chromosome territories localizing primarily in the interior of the nucleus. Surprisingly, we found that homologous chromosomes have a tendency to be associated, the extent of which is related to the number of co-regulated genes residing on the particular chromosome. Furthermore, individual gene domains display lineage-specific proximity according to their co-regulation. Our study supports the idea that the eukaryotic nucleus is broadly organized—with proximity playing a key role—to facilitate coordinated gene regulation during cellular differentiation.
Received: July 10, 2006; Accepted: September 25, 2007; Published: November 20, 2007