Position-Effect Variegation, Heterochromatin Formation, and Gene Silencing in Drosophila
Sarah C. R. Elgin,Gunter Reuter +1 more
TLDR
Position-effect variegation (PEV) results when a gene normally in euchromatin is juxtaposed with heterochromatin by rearrangement or transposition, and causes transcriptional silencing in a stochastic pattern.Abstract:
Position-effect variegation (PEV) results when a gene normally in euchromatin is juxtaposed with heterochromatin by rearrangement or transposition. When heterochromatin packaging spreads across the heterochromatin/euchromatin border, it causes transcriptional silencing in a stochastic pattern. PEV is intensely studied in Drosophila using the white gene. Screens for dominant mutations that suppress or enhance white variegation have identified many conserved epigenetic factors, including the histone H3 lysine 9 methyltransferase SU(VAR)3-9. Heterochromatin protein HP1a binds H3K9me2/3 and interacts with SU(VAR)3-9, creating a core memory system. Genetic, molecular, and biochemical analysis of PEV in Drosophila has contributed many key findings concerning establishment and maintenance of heterochromatin with concomitant gene silencing.read more
Citations
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The molecular hallmarks of epigenetic control
C. David Allis,Thomas Jenuwein +1 more
TL;DR: A personal perspective on the development of epigenetics, from its historical origins to what is defined as 'the modern era of epigenetic research', is provided.
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Phase separation drives heterochromatin domain formation
Amy R. Strom,Alexander Emelyanov,Mustafa Mir,Dmitry V. Fyodorov,Xavier Darzacq,Gary H. Karpen,Gary H. Karpen +6 more
TL;DR: It is proposed that emergent biophysical properties associated with phase-separated systems are critical to understanding the unusual behaviours of heterochromatin, and how chromatin domains in general regulate essential nuclear functions.
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DNA Methylation in Mammals
TL;DR: How DNA methylation serves as a cellular memory system and how it is dynamically regulated through the action of the DNA methyltransferase (DNMT) and ten eleven translocation (TET) enzymes is described.
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The interplay of histone modifications – writers that read
TL;DR: The crosstalk between active and repressive modifications, illustrated by the interplay between the Polycomb and Trithorax histone‐modifying proteins, is reviewed, and how this may be important in defining gene expression states during development is discussed.
Journal ArticleDOI
Ten principles of heterochromatin formation and function.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors discuss conserved principles of heterochromatin formation and function using selected examples from studies of a range of eukaryotes, from yeast to human, with an emphasis on insights obtained from unicellular model organisms.
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