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ChIP-String Ties Down Chromatin Regulator Analysis

March 22, 2012

There are hundreds of chromatin regulators (CRs) out there, and yet we know so little about them other than that they control chromatin structure and function through interactions with histone mods. To help tie down the CR rules of engagement, some handy scientists developed the ChIP-string assay to provide a snapshot of several CRs in […]

Influenza Dodges Antiviral Response with Histone Disguise

March 22, 2012

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, they say. But instead of flattery, the influenza virus (and maybe many other viruses) imitates histones to make people sick. That kind of flattery we could do without. Researchers in NY and the U.K. discovered that influenza A (H3N2)—one of the strains that cause seasonal flu outbreaks—hijacks the […]

Bivalent PREs Protected by Perfect Timing

March 21, 2012

There’s no substitute for good timing. It’s a trait that can keep you out of a dangerous situation, or make you look good on the dance floor. But for cells it’s also critical for maintaining epigenetic states during replication. Italian researchers at the IRCCS Santa Lucia Foundation recently identified a critical time window right before […]

Webinar: Global and Locus-Specific 5-hmC Detection

March 21, 2012

New England Biolabs is hosting a free webinar titled: Global and locus specific 5-hydroxymethylcytosine detection and quantification Tues. March, 27th 2012 at 9am PDT It will discuss simple and quick enzymatic methods for global, as well as sequence-specific, determination of both DNA modifications throughout various genomes. T4 phage B-glucosyltransferase has emerged as the enzyme of […]

Nutritional Epigenetics: Eating For Two (Generations)

March 20, 2012

A new study on pigs (used as models for humans) suggests that what you eat could affect your grandchildren much later on. Pigs who ate a special “methyl” diet had “grandpigs” with different DNA methylation and gene expression patterns than the DNA methylation patterns in the control group. Sure, the findings could help researchers build […]

BrdU Kicks Out DNA Methylation and Kicks Off Stem Cell Differentiation

March 7, 2012

For many things in life, convenience comes at a cost. Like living in a great city with everything at your doorstep, but the rents are sky-high. A new report says that the use of BrdU, a popular tool for detecting replicating cells (such as neural stem cells in the brain), also comes with a cost, […]

Epigenetics at the Intersection of Environment and Selection

February 28, 2012

One of the most fascinating things about epigenetics is the implication it has for inheritance and evolution. Theories and hypotheses are everywhere, of course, but until Sir Richard Branson launches a Virgin Time Travel business, actually measuring the changes from thousands of years of natural selection will remain a pretty tall order. Two recent papers […]

The New Human Epigenome Browser from WashU

February 23, 2012

Looking for the latest in epigenome data analysis tools? Then you’ll want to check out Washington University’s latest creation; The Human Epigenome Browser. Built as part of the Roadmap Epigenomics Project to house and view Human Epigenome Atlas data, this new platform comes with all sorts of slick features to make analyzing, comparing and integrating […]

So Emotional: HDAC6 Affects Mouse Behavior

February 22, 2012

We all have bad days every so often and if you’re like us, you chalk up that depression or anxiety to something like, a looming project deadline or insufficient sleep and caffeine. A new study though, shows that there might be an unlikely culprit behind those negative emotions, your histone deacetylase 6 (HDAC6) levels. Acetylation […]

Emerging Details On Monoallelic Silencing in Tumors

February 19, 2012

It’s funny how research can pay off in surprising ways. In this case, University of Wisconsin scientists were studying the tumor suppressor gene APC when they realized there was an unusual brand of monoallelic silencing going on. Earlier studies have found that many early adenomas begin with the loss of function of the Adenomatous polyposis […]