Uncovering an evolutionary advanced mechanism of gene expression control

Even though the genomes of many mammals have been sequenced, how this genomic information is selectively utilised to direct coordinated patterns of gene expression still remains poorly understood. The way in which genomic information is selectively expressed is through epigenetic processes that include histone modifications, incorporation histone variants and nucleosome remodeling. The recent mapping of these epigenetic modifications has proven valuable in cataloguing mammalian genomes into functional regions. However, the major challenge now is to elucidate how this second dimension of genomic information is functionally translated to regulate specific patterns of gene expression. This proposal will uncover a new mechanism of how this epigenetic information is interpreted to ensure genes are expressed at the right time at the correct place. This new knowledge will have significant implications for agriculture and biotechnology by revealing new ways to manipulate ge