Chromatin Regulation and Dynamics


Book Description

Chromatin Regulation and Dynamics integrates knowledge on the dynamic regulation of primary chromatin fiber with the 3D nuclear architecture, then connects related processes to circadian regulation of cellular metabolic states, representing a paradigm of adaptation to environmental changes. The final chapters discuss the many ways chromatin dynamics can synergize to fundamentally contribute to the development of complex diseases. Chromatin dynamics, which is strategically positioned at the gene-environment interface, is at the core of disease development. As such, Chromatin Regulation and Dynamics, part of the Translational Epigenetics series, facilitates the flow of information between research areas such as chromatin regulation, developmental biology, and epidemiology by focusing on recent findings of the fast-moving field of chromatin regulation. - Presents and discusses novel principles of chromatin regulation and dynamics with a cross-disciplinary perspective - Promotes crosstalk between basic sciences and their applications in medicine - Provides a framework for future studies on complex diseases by integrating various aspects of chromatin biology with cellular metabolic states, with an emphasis on the dynamic nature of chromatin and stochastic principles - Integrates knowledge on the dynamic regulation of primary chromatin fiber with 3D nuclear architecture, then connects related processes to circadian regulation of cellular metabolic states, representing a paradigm of adaptation to environmental changes




Modifications of Nuclear DNA and Its Regulatory Proteins


Book Description

DNA methylation is essential for the normal development and functioning of organisms. This volume discusses the latest developments in this very active field of research. It presents the evolution of DNA methylation, mammalian DNA methyltransferases, DNA methylation and demethlyation, DNA methylation and silencing and the role it plays in medicine including cancer. Discusses new discoveries, approaches, and ideas Contributions from leading scholars and industry experts Reference guide for researchers involved in molecular biology and related fields







Epigenetic Mechanisms of Gene Regulation


Book Description

Many inheritable changes in gene function are not explained by changes in the DNA sequence. Such epigenetic mechanisms are known to influence gene function in most complex organisms and include effects such as transposon function, chromosome imprinting, yeast mating type switching and telomeric silencing. In recent years, epigenetic effects have become a major focus of research activity. This monograph, edited by three well-known biologists from different specialties, is the first to review and synthesize what is known about these effects across all species, particularly from a molecular perspective, and will be of interest to everyone in the fields of molecular biology and genetics.




Modifications of Nuclear DNA and its Regulatory Proteins


Book Description

DNA methylation is essential for the normal development and functioning of organisms. This volume discusses the latest developments in this very active field of research. It presents the evolution of DNA methylation, mammalian DNA methyltransferases, DNA methylation and demethlyation, DNA methylation and silencing and the role it plays in medicine including cancer. - Discusses new discoveries, approaches, and ideas - Contributions from leading scholars and industry experts - Reference guide for researchers involved in molecular biology and related fields




Introduction to Epigenetics


Book Description

This open access textbook leads the reader from basic concepts of chromatin structure and function and RNA mechanisms to the understanding of epigenetics, imprinting, regeneration and reprogramming. The textbook treats epigenetic phenomena in animals, as well as plants. Written by four internationally known experts and senior lecturers in this field, it provides a valuable tool for Master- and PhD- students who need to comprehend the principles of epigenetics, or wish to gain a deeper knowledge in this field. After reading this book, the student will: Have an understanding of the basic toolbox of epigenetic regulation Know how genetic and epigenetic information layers are interconnected Be able to explain complex epigenetic phenomena by understanding the structures and principles of the underlying molecular mechanisms Understand how misregulated epigenetic mechanisms can lead to disease




Epigenetic Contributions in Autoimmune Disease


Book Description

This volume focuses on the relevance of epigenetic mechanisms in autoimmune disease. It provides new directions for future research in autoimmune disease.




Regulation of Alternative Splicing


Book Description

The discovery in 1977 that genes are split into exons and introns has done away with the one gene - one protein dogma. Indeed, the removal of introns from the primary RNA transcript is not necessarily straightforward since there may be optional pathways leading to different messenger RNAs and consequently to different proteins. Examples of such an alternative splicing mechanism cover all fields of biology. Moreover, there are plenty of occurrences where deviant splicing can have pathological effects. Despite the high number of specific cases of alternative splicing, it was not until recently that the generality and extent of this phenomenon was fully appreciated. A superficial reading of the preliminary sequence of the human genome published in 2001 led to the surprising, and even deceiving to many scientists, low number of genes (around 32,000) which contrasted with the much higher figure around 150,000 which was previously envisioned. Attempts to make a global assessment of the use of alternative splicing are recent and rely essentially on the comparison of genomic mRNA and EST sequences as reviewed by Thanaraj and Stamm in the first chapter of this volume. Most recent estimates suggest that 40-60% of human genes might be alternatively spliced, as opposed to about 22% for C. elegans.




Computational Genomics with R


Book Description

Computational Genomics with R provides a starting point for beginners in genomic data analysis and also guides more advanced practitioners to sophisticated data analysis techniques in genomics. The book covers topics from R programming, to machine learning and statistics, to the latest genomic data analysis techniques. The text provides accessible information and explanations, always with the genomics context in the background. This also contains practical and well-documented examples in R so readers can analyze their data by simply reusing the code presented. As the field of computational genomics is interdisciplinary, it requires different starting points for people with different backgrounds. For example, a biologist might skip sections on basic genome biology and start with R programming, whereas a computer scientist might want to start with genome biology. After reading: You will have the basics of R and be able to dive right into specialized uses of R for computational genomics such as using Bioconductor packages. You will be familiar with statistics, supervised and unsupervised learning techniques that are important in data modeling, and exploratory analysis of high-dimensional data. You will understand genomic intervals and operations on them that are used for tasks such as aligned read counting and genomic feature annotation. You will know the basics of processing and quality checking high-throughput sequencing data. You will be able to do sequence analysis, such as calculating GC content for parts of a genome or finding transcription factor binding sites. You will know about visualization techniques used in genomics, such as heatmaps, meta-gene plots, and genomic track visualization. You will be familiar with analysis of different high-throughput sequencing data sets, such as RNA-seq, ChIP-seq, and BS-seq. You will know basic techniques for integrating and interpreting multi-omics datasets. Altuna Akalin is a group leader and head of the Bioinformatics and Omics Data Science Platform at the Berlin Institute of Medical Systems Biology, Max Delbrück Center, Berlin. He has been developing computational methods for analyzing and integrating large-scale genomics data sets since 2002. He has published an extensive body of work in this area. The framework for this book grew out of the yearly computational genomics courses he has been organizing and teaching since 2015.