Linking DNA and histone methylationApril 30, 2007In the May 15th issue of G&D, Dr. Michael Carey (UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center) and colleagues lend new insight into the mechanism of epigenetic silencing of euchromatic genes. Dr. Carey emphasizes that "The study provides a new direction to understand how histone and DNA methylation, two phenomena that play a significant role in stem cell differentiation and cancer, can communicate with each other to turn genes off. " Although both histone and DNA methylation have long been recognized as hallmarks of euchromatic gene silencing, how these two processes cooperate to induce silencing has remained unresolved. In their upcoming paper, Dr. Carey and colleagues detail that mammalian HP1 proteins facilitate this cooperation. They found that HP1 proteins, which bind to methylated histones, also interact with the DNA methyltransferase, DNMT1, to stimulate its DNA methylation activity. DNMT1, in turn, reinforced HP1 binding to methylated histones. Finally, the researchers showed that DNMT1-stimulated HP1 binding is required for gene silencing. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory |
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| Related Methylation Current Events and Methylation News Articles Researchers discover RNA repair system in bacteria In new papers appearing this month in Science and the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, University of Illinois biochemistry professor Raven H. Huang and his colleagues describe the first RNA repair system to be discovered in bacteria. Genes signal late-stage laryngeal cancer, poorer outcome Researchers at Henry Ford Hospital have identified tumor-suppressing genes that may provide a more accurate diagnosis of disease stage and survival for laryngeal cancer patients than current standards. MDC scientists show how hematopoietic stem cell development is regulated During cell division, whether hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) will develop into new stem cells (self-renewal) or differentiate into other blood cells depends on a chemical process called DNA methylation. Study finds 231 new genes associated with head and neck cancer A Henry Ford Hospital study has identified 231 new genes associated with head and neck cancer, one of the most deadly cancers responsible for 2.1 percent of all cancer deaths in the United States. New Approach for the Treatment of Malignant Brain Tumors Initial chemotherapy alone after surgery is just as successful as initial radiation therapy for patients from whom a very malignant brain tumor (anaplastic glioma) was removed. With this treatment, the patients survive on average > 30 months without a recurrence. New blood tests promise simple, cost-effective diagnosis of gastrointestinal cancers Promising results from two new blood tests that can aid in the early identification of patients with gastrointestinal (GI) cancers will be presented at Europe's largest cancer congress. Changes to DNA linked to diabetes Genes that regulate the energy consumption of cells have a different structure and expression in type II diabetics than they do in healthy people, according to a new study from the Swedish medical university Karolinska Institutet published in Cell Metabolism. Why don't brain tumors respond to medication? Malignant brain tumors often fail to respond to promising new medication. Researchers in Heidelberg have discovered a mechanism and a tumor marker for the development of this resistance. New DNA Test Uses Nanotechnology to Find Early Signs of Cancer Using tiny crystals called quantum dots, Johns Hopkins researchers have developed a highly sensitive test to look for DNA attachments that often are early warning signs of cancer. Researchers develop new, more-sensitive assay for detecting DNA methylation in colon cancer A study published in this week's online issue of Nature Biotechnology, demonstrates a unique and highly sensitive method for detecting methylation-associated cancers. More Methylation Current Events and Methylation News Articles |
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