Cracking Code Of Gene Regulation
Researchers have compiled a comprehensive 'Codebook' of human transcription factor binding preferences, mapping how proteins regulate gene expression. This study provides a vital dictionary for understanding how cells read DNA instructions, which is essential for advancing genetic research and disease treatment.
Why it matters
Understanding gene regulation is fundamental to decoding how genetic instructions lead to specific cell functions and identifying the root causes of various diseases.
EPFL researchers help complete the largest map yet of how human cells read DNA and reveal how chemical marks can change the meaning of the genetic instructions.
Every cell in the body contains essentially the same DNA; and yet, a brain cell behaves differently from a muscle cell or an immune cell. The difference lies largely in how each cell reads its genetic instructions.
Proteins called transcription factors bind specific DNA sequences and help control when and where genes are active. They direct processes ranging from embryonic development to immune function. When this regulation goes wrong, disease can result. But although the human genome contains around 1,600 transcription factors, the DNA-binding preferences of many have remained unknown.
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