Abstract:
Gene expression is regulated by a combination of transcription factor binding and the distribution of epigenetic modifications across regulatory regions. Much of what we know about the epigenome and gene regulation stems from our ability to determine the genome-wide distribution of histone modifications and transcription factors using chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by next generation sequencing (ChIP-seq). As sequencing technology has advanced, genome-wide epigenetic assays have evolved to take advantage of high read numbers at decreasing costs. However as we ask more complex questions the limitations of traditional ChIP have impeded our scientific advancements. Active Motif has developed a variety of tools and services to overcome many of these challenges, which will be presented in this webinar including:
• A Spike-In normalization method for preserving biological differences between ChIP samples.
• ChIP-exo: A method for determining the precise region of DNA bound by your factor
• A unique epitope tag for studying difficult-to-ChIP transcription factors
• Methods for reducing the number of cells required for ChIP
Lastly, we will discuss new approaches we have taken to understand gene regulation by elucidating proteins in complex with your factor of interest using Rapid Immunoprecipitation Mass Spec of Endogenous proteins (RIME), developed in collaboration with the Carroll lab at the Cambridge Research Institute. Taken together, all of the above advancements in ChIP-based assays help us to gain a deeper understanding of the complex mechanisms that regulate our genomes.