Validating GWAS with Epigenome EditingOctober 10, 2015GWASs (genome-wide association studies) have found a lot of genetic variants associated with various traits and diseases. But GWASs suffer from that old weakness, the mantra of every good scientist: correlation does not imply causation. The problem gets even worse when you find out most GWAS variants are in non-coding regions of DNA, meaning they […]
MicroRNA Isoforms Distinguish Between Breast Cancer SubtypesOctober 6, 2015Much like the early explorers who set out to find a new trade route to Asia and accidentally stumbled across the Americas, researchers mapping the transcriptome have come across some big surprises. Recently, Isidore Rigoutsos’s lab showed that the expression of microRNA isoforms (called ‘isomiRs’) and tRNAs depends on sex, population, and race. Now, this […]
Stressed Nucleosomes Linked to DepressionOctober 6, 2015Have you ever felt stressed and even depressed? Well, a new study linking stress-induced depressive behaviors to changes in nucleosome positioning suggests that in order to relax yourself, you may first need to relax your chromatin. Susceptibility to major depressive disorder (MDD) depends on genetic variability but also on environmental factors such as a stressful […]
New Reporter System Captures DNA Methylation in Real TimeOctober 1, 2015If a picture is worth a thousand words then surely a video must be worth more? So far, our knowledge about DNA methylation has been limited to a comic strip of static images at different stages. That may all be about to change with a new tool reported by the lab of Rudolf Jaenisch, which […]
Key Factors that Mend Broken HeartsSeptember 30, 2015Jimmy Ruffin once asked, “What becomes of the broken hearted?” and the answer is normally found on a barstool or at the bottom of an ice cream tub. But for those suffering from the much more visceral consequences of a heart attack, the therapeutic avenues down which they can travel are more limited and less […]
Sorting the Old from the New – Cellular Barriers Keeps Stem Cells YoungSeptember 29, 2015Alongside smartphones, coffee shops, and bars, we all also need properly functioning stem cells to survive and prosper. Indeed, the stem cell theory of aging posits that the malfunctioning of stem cells in our later years, and not all that caffeine and alcohol, is the major cause of human aging. So how do we keep […]
Microfluidic ChIP Makes a Few Cells Go a Long WaySeptember 11, 2015Chromatin immunoprecipitation (or ChIP) is a handy technique to study epigenetic profiles, but only if you have enough cells. The main problem with ChIP is that it can be a “greedy” technique that uses large numbers of cells while giving back the bare minimum of DNA as a result. This is problematic for the study of genome-wide […]
Microlasers Hold Big Promise for Next Generation Cellular AnalysisSeptember 11, 2015Recent work by Seok Hyun Yun and Matjaž Humar has shown us that laser shows aren’t just for Pink Floyd fans. These crafty researchers incorporated specific structures into individual cells, turning them into self-contained “microlasers”. In its simplest form, laser (or light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation) technology uses an energy source to amplify photons bouncing between reflective […]
CRISPR Hack Enhances Stem Cell DifferentiationSeptember 11, 2015From horses in the farmyard to yeast in beer production, human beings have a long history of putting nature’s gifts to work. This can also be said of CRISPR technology, which utilizes a Cas9 DNA endonuclease and a guide RNA to target and destroy specific DNA sites. Nature had intended a role for CRISPR in bacterial […]
A Polymerase Evolved for Your Bisulfite Converted DNASeptember 11, 2015Bisulfite conversion can be used in so many different applications that it’s not so surprisingly referred to as the gold standard for DNA methylation analysis. But getting to the gold can create some problems for DNA. The process of converting methylated DNA (5mC) to Uracil and then finally a Thymine is harsh as it involves […]