Research
All organisms must pass on an intact genome to their progeny - plants and animals face the added problem that many cell divisions elapse between fertilization and formation of new germ cells. We are interested in two related questions: 1) How are chromosomes correctly inherited during cell division? and 2) How is genomic instability prevented? The fact that genomic instability is found in almost all cancers highlights the biomedical relevance of our work.
The DNA sequence of a chromosome contains features important for preserving its stability, but we are especially interested in the role of epigenetic information i.e. chromosome properties that are not encoded in the basic DNA sequence. Epigenetic marks include DNA methylation, modifications to the histone proteins that package DNA, and small RNA molecules (siRNAs). Arabidopsis thaliana is excellent for studying chromosome function, because its epigenetic mechanisms are highly similar to vertebrate cells.
Genomic instability assays in Arabidopsis.
Dr Anne Britt's lab in the Section of Plant Biology has developed a visual assay for genomic instability that utilizes a heterozygous albino gene. We are using this assay to characterize a number of interesting Arabidopsis mutants, and are also developing new assays for chromosome function.
Cytological studies of cell division.
In tandem with our genetic studies, we are beginning to characterize cell division in Arabidopsis using microscopy. GFP-labelled proteins, tagged chromosome arrays, and fluorescence in situ hybridization will be used to characterize the effect of epigenetic changes on chromosome behaviour.
