Putting Epigenetics on the MapOctober 12, 2009Between the mapping centers, generating enormous quantities of data for the NIH Roadmap Epigenomics Initiative, and the NCBI that is archiving and distributing it, lies the Epigenomics Data Analysis and Coordination Center. Aleksandar Milosavljevic and co-PI Arthur Beaudet won the 5-year, $7+ million U01 grant last year to set up and run the EDACC informatics […]
Small RNA Sequencing Adds Color(Space) to miRNA Dynamics in Stem Cell RegulationOctober 1, 2009For the last few years, stem cell researchers have been intrigued by miRNAs’ Houdini-esqe disappearing act as stem cells embrace their fate. Add in evidence showing how knocking out endogenous miRNA machinery like Ago2 can really add a few kinks to proper neural development and you get a stem cell community that’s fired up to […]
miRNA Regulatory Documentary Bonus Footage: Featuring XRN-2September 10, 2009Most miRNA plots we follow share a similar climactic ending: miRNA inhibits this, in this condition, in response to this. Don’t get us wrong. We can read about miRNA regulation all day, which is good because we often do, but do you ever wonder what happens to miRNAs after they’ve locked their target, and put […]
Getting RIPped: miRNA Target ID Workout DeliversSeptember 9, 2009As former bodybuilder turned California Governator, Arnold Schwarzenegger, once said, “Great abs are made in the kitchen…” That may be, but when it comes to epigenetics research, great abs are made by great labs and suppliers, and they’re put to work in immunoprecipitation applications like RIP Chip. Recently, Anke van den Berg and colleagues at […]
Rinse and Spit: The Future of Cancer TestingAugust 25, 2009Gather round the spittoon, partners, there’s a new Ome in town. The miRome has joined the proteome and transcriptome as the “third diagnostic alphabet in saliva,” extols UCLA dental prof David Wong. For the past seven years or so the NIH (in particular the National Institute of Dental and CranioFacial Research) has been pushing saliva […]
miRNAs Help Boost Herpes Image in Prostate Cancer CommunityAugust 19, 2009The herpes virus (HSV-1) has never been well-liked in most circles. Hey, it’s hard to blame folks, what with all of the cold sores (or worse), for not wanting to get too close. But that may soon change as a team of scientists from The Prostate Centre at Vancouver General Hospital, is looking to upgrade […]
Mir-143 Slacks Off, Leaving DNMT3A To Run Wild In Colorectal CancerAugust 6, 2009We like to think of epigenetics in terms of distinct areas like chromatin, DNA methylation and non-coding RNA (heck, we’ve even divided up the EpiGenie website that way), but more and more evidence is blurring the lines and showing us how these overlap. A recent publication from researchers at The Chinese University of Hong Kong […]
Patience is Key to RNA Pol II Relationship with NucleosomeJuly 30, 2009here’s been lots of buzz about nucleosomes and RNAs lately. In fact, just last week EpiGenie reported that transcription initiation RNAs (tiRNAs) might be formed as RNA Pol II hits a nucleosome and backtracks. Nucleosomal post-transcriptional mods can cause RNA Polymerase II to pause or abort, while others can kick transcription into high gear. But […]
One Small SNP for miRNA, One Major Impact on Gene RegulationJuly 29, 2009Not that we’re trying to downplay the magnitude of getting peeps on the moon, but when you consider the amount of gene regulation that can be packed into a confined miRNA-target interaction one small step for man seems kinda 40yr old hat. It’s no wonder that single base changes in miRNAs and/or their targets can […]
tiRNAs Emerge from FANTOM4July 22, 2009As deep sequencing platforms displace Nintendo’s Wii as the most popular toy in the research community, labs are discovering new varieties of RNAs at a dizzying pace. The latest edition, transcription initiation RNAs (tiRNAs), were recently identified by scientists at the University of Queensland in Australia, and published in Nature Genetics last April, by mining […]