Signaling silence--breaking ground and spreading out.
Among the persistent mysteries in epigenetics are the criteria by which specific regions of the genome are chosen for deposition of distinguishing chromatin marks. Once a particular region is modified, will the newly acquired epigenetic state spill onto neighboring regions of the genome or be confined to tidy patches? The report by Henderson and Jacobsen in the the previous issue of Genes & Development (1597-1606) addresses these questions while providing insight into the utility of DNA methylation for a eukaryotic genome.
Woo
Hye Ryun
HR
Department of Biology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri 63130, USA.
Richards
Eric J
EJ
D000818:Animals; D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism; D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D019175:DNA Methylation; D044127:Epigenesis, Genetic; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; D020868:Gene Silencing / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D015398:Signal Transduction; D020080:Tandem Repeat Sequences
D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins