Areas of Interest
The DNA that is harbored within a ~6 micron human cell nucleus would reach nearly 6 feet in length if laid on end. While it’s easy to appreciate the capacity for cells to package such a large amount of genetic material into an extremely confined space, a truly astonishing feat is the dynamic nature of this packaging which allows for cell type and context-specific gene expression profiles to manifest in interphase cells. My research is centered upon elucidating the relationship between chromatin structure and gene regulation. Using a combination of FISH-based cytological assays, C. elegans genetics, and high-throughput methods such as Hi-C and RNA-seq, I am determining how the three-dimensional structure and subnuclear organization of the X chromosomes lead to transcriptional repression in the context of dosage compensation.