title: Dangerous R loops form in the absence of H3K9 methylation.
abstract: Methylation of histone H3 on lysine 9 (H3K9) is a hallmark of transcriptionally inactive heterochromatin that is deregulated in pathological conditions. A new study shows that complete loss of H3K9 methylation in Caenorhabditis elegans leads to derepression of repetitive elements and formation of DNA:RNA hybrids (R loops), resulting in increased rates of repeat-specific mutation.
authors: Biotech Research and Innovation Centre, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.
authors: Anna Elisabetta
authors: AE
authors: Salcini
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000235:genetics*; D019175:DNA Methylation / Q000235:genetics*; D006570:Heterochromatin / Q000235:genetics*; D011495:Histone-Lysine N-Methyltransferase / Q000235:genetics; D006657:Histones / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D012091:Repetitive Sequences, Nucleic Acid / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D006570:Heterochromatin; D006657:Histones; D011495:Histone-Lysine N-Methyltransferase