Contacts between DNA sequences become longer and more frequent in the presence of the cohesin protein complex and a protein called CTCF, FMI researchers have found.
Contacts between DNA sequences become longer and more frequent in the presence of the cohesin protein complex and a protein called CTCF, FMI researchers have found. New work by FMI researchers shows that key proteins help to stabilize the interaction between otherwise highly dynamic DNA structures. The findings shed light onto how the complex folds that help to fit nearly two meters of DNA into the cell's nucleus influence important biological processes. The genome is organized into 3D structures that can control gene expression by bringing genes together with their regulatory elements. However, it is unknown if contacts between DNA sequences are rare and stable or if they are frequent and transient. Researchers in the group of Luca Giorgetti tagged sequences within self-interacting DNA regions with fluorescent proteins. Then, they watched how the sequences interacted with each other in living cells over several hours.
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