Viral miRNA Social Networking via ExosomesMarch 29, 2010Just a few years ago miRNAs were viewed as pretty solitary transcripts, exhibiting their regulatory muti-tasking skills primarily within their micro-environments. Recent evidence however has shown that miRNAs can spring from their cellular confines when secreted in exosomes, our cells’ version of public transit. A few groups have hypothesized that these exosome-associated miRNAs might play […]
The Secret Life of 5-AzacytidineMarch 29, 20105-azacytidine has been in the public eye for quite a while now, and it’s been widely known as a powerful demethylating agent in clinical trials for cancer. So you can imagine our surprise when a new publication in Epigenetics caught 5-azacytidine also living a secret life of reorganizing histone modifications…lots of them. Researchers from UC […]
EpiGenie Gets a Face LiftMarch 18, 2010Since we launched EpiGenie two years ago, we’ve been redesigning it and putting various bandages on it to share information a little better. Well, three web developers and a bunch of late nights later, we’re psyched to present our new look and feel. What’s New? We made a number of changes to design and our […]
Thank Histone Methylation for the MemoriesMarch 17, 2010Ever notice how certain things can trigger unpleasant memories (like that sushi that gave you food poisoning)? Researchers have long wondered how these “contextual fear memories” get burned into our brains. A new study led by Farah Lubin at the University of Alabama at Birmingham has shown that histone methylation plays an important role in […]
The Aging Methylome and CancerMarch 15, 2010Between the body aches and wrinkles, most of us don’t need to be reminded that getting old is the most significant health risk. A new report in Genome Research explains how promoters of certain Polycomb group protein target genes (PCGTs) become increasingly hypermethylated as we age; leaving us more at risk for cancer. The link […]
For miRNA Genes, Thin Is In(tron)March 3, 2010An alarming new trend is sweeping the nation: men in skinny jeans. The fad has gone so far that even miRNAs have started squeezing themselves into tight genes, so to speak. According to a new paper by researchers from Tel Aviv University and Harvard, it seems miRNA genes preferentially wedge themselves within the introns of […]
Epigenetic Marks Make the Long Distance Thing Look EasyFebruary 22, 2010Even with all the advanced communications at our fingertips today, long distance relationships rarely work out, but it appears epigenetic silencing is an exception. Epigenetic silencing can spread to neighboring genomic regions through long-range epigenetic silencing (LRES) in cancer cells. In LRES, large blocks of genomic regions (like on the order of megabases) get silenced. […]
Transcription Factors Stand Up to the Methylation MachineFebruary 18, 2010Sometimes the best defense is a good offense. That appears to be the case for transcription factors (TFs) that resist de novo DNA methylation by binding to their sites in CpG islands. Although this idea has been around for awhile, a team of German and American researchers led by Michael Rehli recently provided the first […]
CSI’s Newest Crime-Solving Tool: miRNAsFebruary 17, 2010The TV franchise CSI: Crime Scene Investigation makes it seem like analyzing biological samples in a criminal investigation is as simple as pushing a button on a fancy gizmo and having the results printed out within seconds. (Of course, they also solve complex mysteries in under an hour every week, so I guess you can’t […]
Nature and Nurture Walking the Same Path?February 11, 2010Ever notice how it gets more interesting when there’s more than just black or white, love or hate, good or evil? The real action seems to take place in the gray areas. It seems true for methylated alleles as well. A recent paper looking into genomic imprinting found new evidence that both genomic and environmental […]