The PARTICLE Accelerator of DNA and Histone Methylation CoordinationJune 8, 2017Finding the links between DNA methylation and histone modification is no easy chore. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) may be the answer; they are a huge part of the transcriptome, and many appear to be functional. There is growing evidence that lncRNAs act to “lnc” other epigenetic regulators together and coordinate their function. Adding to that […]
Rapid m6A RNA Methylation Soothes Your Molecular SunburnsApril 10, 2017Now that has spring has sprung, many of us are quickly remembering not only how much we missed the sunshine, but also that we forgot to stock up on aloe vera to soothe that fresh sunburn. Attesting to the utility of a good spot treatment, the lab of Yang Shi at Harvard Medical School reveals […]
CAGE Releases an Accurate Atlas of lncRNA Origin and FunctionMarch 21, 2017Don’t you just hate when you’re trying to get from A to B and google maps can’t even figure out where you’re starting from? Well, just like your last trip to that hot new sushi place, the precise location of lncRNA origins has only been plotted with blurry lines. Thankfully, to aid the start of […]
CRISPR Interference Sheds Light on lncRNA FunctionDecember 24, 2016CRISPR/Cas9 regularly “lights up” our homepage here at Epigenie with new breakthroughs in DNA methylation, stem cell gene editing, and 3-D chromosome structure, to name but a few of the recent highlights. Now, an exciting new study published in Science has employed CRISPR/Cas9 technology to illuminate the “dark matter” of our genome; the ubiquitous but […]
Intergenerational Transmission of Extracellular dsRNA Filmed in C. elegansNovember 1, 2016Seeing is believing, whether it be a topic as hot as the upcoming presidential election or intergenerational epigenetic effects and transgenerational epigenetic inheritance. While exciting evidence on the role of sperm RNA in mammals has begun to accumulate thanks to the labs of Mansuy, Bale, and Rando, an elegant C. elegans study from the lab […]
Controlling Gene Circuits With sgRNA-RNA Aptamer HybridsOctober 10, 2016Earlier this year, Chris Voigt’s lab wrote an automated composer for synthetic gene circuits, which can design circuits to do what you want, all the way down to the DNA sequence. As good musicians know, however, the work doesn’t stop once the composer’s ink dries on the page – the next step is to find […]
Form Meets Function in Long Non-Coding RNAsOctober 10, 2016Thousands of long non-coding RNAs have been discovered in recent years, leading some to claim there may be as many functional RNAs as proteins. The hoopla, however, has left some wondering whether the field is all bark and no bite. Many recent functional studies have demonstrated clear visible phenotypes for long non-coding RNAs, quieting some […]
m6A Enables XIST’s Repressive ExistenceSeptember 27, 2016Life can be hard out there for an X chromosome, particularly when faced with a well-known molecular form of sexual discrimination. The key to this repressive environment and resulting existential crisis is X-inactive specific transcript (XIST), a long non-coding (lnc)RNA known to undergo modifications such as cytosine methylation. However, RNA methylation is a rapidly evolving […]
R-Loops at Gene Promoters and Terminals Mark the EpigenomeJuly 18, 2016In today’s loopy world, the wise words “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it” have a particular resonance. Thankfully, our epigenomes are dynamic historians that get the message and make use of past transcripts by forming R-loops. R-Loops and the Epigenome R-loops are RNA-DNA hybrids: a 3 stranded nucleic acid structure. […]
Extra-Coding RNAs (ecRNAs) Sculpt Dynamic DNA Methylation of the BrainJuly 18, 2016We’ve got our mind on methylation and methylation in our mind, but we are often left wondering how DNA methylation got there in the first place. Well, that cognitive tongue twister has now been cracked by a class of RNA that likes to interact with DNA methyltransferases. Extra coding RNAs (ecRNAs) originate from the sense […]