The Complexity of Gene Silencing

For this article, Jim Kling interviewed University of Edinburgh geneticist Adrian Bird and Paul A. Wade, assistant professor in the department of pathology and laboratory medicine at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta. Data from the Web of Science (ISI, Philadelphia) show that Hot Papers are cited 50 to 100 times more often than the average paper of the same type and age. H.-H. Ng, Y. Zhang, B. Hendrich, C.A. Johnson et al., "MBD2 is a transcriptional repressor belonging to the MeCP

| 6 min read

Register for free to listen to this article
Listen with Speechify
0:00
6:00
Share

Histones, proteins that form a cylindrical tuna-can-like structure, act as a scaffold around which DNA coils. Histone deacetylases, as their name implies, remove acetyl groups from the histone proteins. The resulting chemical changes induce structural realignments that could trigger or repress gene transcription. Meanwhile, DNA methylation leads to gene silencing. The fact that the two functions are wrapped in the same complex provides an intriguing mechanism for how genes get silenced.

University of Edinburgh geneticist Adrian Bird and his team approached the problem from the perspective of methylated DNA, while Paul A. Wade, assistant professor in the department of pathology and laboratory medicine at the Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, and colleagues began with histone deacetyl-ase activity. Despite the different thought processes, the results of both efforts reached the same conclusion: binding to methylated DNA is directly linked to histone deacetylases that restructure the chromatin and dampen transcription. ...

Interested in reading more?

Become a Member of

The Scientist Logo
Receive full access to digital editions of The Scientist, as well as TS Digest, feature stories, more than 35 years of archives, and much more!
Already a member? Login Here

Meet the Author

  • Jim Kling

    This person does not yet have a bio.

Published In

Share
3D illustration of a gold lipid nanoparticle with pink nucleic acid inside of it. Purple and teal spikes stick out from the lipid bilayer representing polyethylene glycol.
February 2025, Issue 1

A Nanoparticle Delivery System for Gene Therapy

A reimagined lipid vehicle for nucleic acids could overcome the limitations of current vectors.

View this Issue
Enhancing Therapeutic Antibody Discovery with Cross-Platform Workflows

Enhancing Therapeutic Antibody Discovery with Cross-Platform Workflows

sartorius logo
Considerations for Cell-Based Assays in Immuno-Oncology Research

Considerations for Cell-Based Assays in Immuno-Oncology Research

Lonza
An illustration of animal and tree silhouettes.

From Water Bears to Grizzly Bears: Unusual Animal Models

Taconic Biosciences
Sex Differences in Neurological Research

Sex Differences in Neurological Research

bit.bio logo

Products

Photo of a researcher overseeing large scale production processes in a laboratory.

Scaling Lentiviral Vector Manufacturing for Optimal Productivity

Thermo Fisher Logo
Collage-style urban graphic of wastewater surveillance and treatment

Putting Pathogens to the Test with Wastewater Surveillance

An illustration of an mRNA molecule in front of a multicolored background.

Generating High-Quality mRNA for In Vivo Delivery with lipid nanoparticles

Thermo Fisher Logo
Tecan Logo

Tecan introduces Veya: bringing digital, scalable automation to labs worldwide