Form Meets Function in Long Non-Coding RNAsOctober 10, 2016Thousands of long non-coding RNAs have been discovered in recent years, leading some to claim there may be as many functional RNAs as proteins. The hoopla, however, has left some wondering whether the field is all bark and no bite. Many recent functional studies have demonstrated clear visible phenotypes for long non-coding RNAs, quieting some […]
Two “Suite” Tools for Tackling Big Data in Cancer Epigenomics AnalysesOctober 4, 2016With all the new datasets available, making sense of epigenomics data can be like finding a needle in a hayfield, let alone a stack. Studies of epigenetics in human complex disease have been greatly aided by larger and larger databases, but identifying meaningful biological relationships using these databases is challenging given their size. Cancer studies […]
Reporter of Genomic Methylation Delivers Imprinting and Epigenome Editing InsightsOctober 3, 2016Here at EpiGenie we like to think of ourselves as reporters of genomic methylation, but two new studies from the lab of Rudolf Jaenisch at MIT give us a run for our money and demonstrate the utility of their reporter of genomic methylation (RGM). Using RGM, the talented group brings forth a deeper understanding of […]
m6A Enables XIST’s Repressive ExistenceSeptember 27, 2016Life can be hard out there for an X chromosome, particularly when faced with a well-known molecular form of sexual discrimination. The key to this repressive environment and resulting existential crisis is X-inactive specific transcript (XIST), a long non-coding (lnc)RNA known to undergo modifications such as cytosine methylation. However, RNA methylation is a rapidly evolving […]
Proteomic Analysis of Aging MSCs Reveals New Targets to Enhance Musculoskeletal TherapiesSeptember 27, 2016Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are surely the “workhorses” of both the body and the regenerative medicine field. They display multiple advantageous characteristics, including the ability to differentiate into musculoskeletal tissues, that make MSCs the go-to cell type for tissue-engineering solutions for disease/age-related disorders. Furthermore, many tissues require the proper on-going function of tissue-resident MSCs to […]
