Epigenetic Exploitation of Host Cells by VirusesDecember 14, 2014Exploitation is a common theme in all fields of biology and viruses are no exception. But now it seems that viruses are up to some creative tricks when it comes to keeping a low profile in preparation for their full attack and sneaking out a few infections, a process known as viral latency. While DNA methylation may function as […]
Epigenetics Mediates Immortality of Adult Stem CellsDecember 13, 2014What would you do to ensure your immortality? Drink a potion? Cast a spell? Or even set out on an expedition to find the fountain of youth? Researchers from the Adult Stem Cell Technology Centre in Boston, USA have discovered that adult stem cells in the mouse have another more intricate strategy towards living forever […]
Unwinding the Chromatin–Cancer ConnectionDecember 4, 2014There’s no denying that epigenetics and cancer are intimately intertwined, and that untangling this connection is vitally important in expanding our understanding of cancer initiation and development. Epigenetic signals are reversible regulators of gene expression and as such, make compelling targets in the study and treatment of cancer. As high-throughput data analysis becomes the norm, entire panels […]
Two New Players for Better Differential Peak Detection in ChIP-SeqNovember 22, 2014Sometimes bioinformatics can seem a bit mystical, particularly when a tool arrives that makes you wonder what you were wasting your time doing before it. ChIP-seq is no stranger to this world and as a driver of a large proportion of epigenomic experimentation we’re also no stranger to the challenges of processing ChIP-seq data and peak calling. One of […]
Breaking Barriers: Cloning Made Easier by Erasing Epigenetic MarksNovember 5, 2014If Star Wars is anything to go by, cloning techniques of the future will be able to create a whole army of clones in the blink of an eye. Yet, back on planet Earth, the cloning of today is still relatively inefficient. A new study published in Cell identifies an important epigenetic road block in […]
Histone Modification Reading Domains Crack Complex CombosOctober 30, 2014Having alternatives is always great, particularly when it comes to studying histone modifications. By using some recombinant proteins of histone reading domains, researchers from the lab of Albert Jeltsch at Stuttgart University (Germany) recently demonstrated that these domains might just one-up antibodies when it comes to deciphering the combos of the histone code. Lead author Goran Kungulovski shares that “Histone […]
Pluripotency Genes are Loopy about their NeighborhoodOctober 25, 2014Most of us understand the importance of a good neighborhood; we look for somewhere to reflect our identity and to bring us together with similar minded people. Interestingly, recent work from the labs of Keji Zhao and Richard A. Young suggests that certain genes in embryonic stem cells (ESCs) act in a similar manner. The inquisitive crew of […]
Epigram: Predicting the Human Epigenome from DNA MotifsOctober 16, 2014There’s no denying the power of technology in our lives, whether it be your latest and greatest iPhone bending in your pocket or it be getting the technology to do something more useful, like predict the entire epigenome and how it functions in the regulation of gene expression. We’ve always loved a good tool and/or […]
Inheritance of Histone Mod Caught at Cell divisionSeptember 29, 2014Transgenerational Epigenetic Inheritance is one of our favorite topics, it’s done a great job of showing old school Mendelian inheritance who’s boss by creating the molecular complexity of complex traits. With phenotypes and exposures aplenty, the one thing that has been missing is catching the inheritance of an acquired epigenetic mark in the act. And that’s just what a […]
Transcription Factor Networking Predicts Histone ModsSeptember 22, 2014Computational networking is all the rage, not only can it help you keep track of your friends and colleagues but it can also reveal a surprising amount of information behind the regulation of gene expression. Now a computationally cutting edge team from the University of Edinburgh have found out how to use transcription factor binding patterns […]
