Perspectives: using polymer modeling to understand the formation and function of nuclear compartments.
Chromosome Res
; 25(1): 35-50, 2017 03.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-28091870
Compartmentalization is a ubiquitous feature of cellular function. In the nucleus, early observations revealed a non-random spatial organization of the genome with a large-scale segregation between transcriptionally active-euchromatin-and silenced-heterochromatin-parts of the genome. Recent advances in genome-wide mapping and imaging techniques have strikingly improved the resolution at which nuclear genome folding can be analyzed and have revealed a multiscale spatial compartmentalization with increasing evidences that such compartment may indeed result from and participate to genome function. Understanding the underlying mechanisms of genome folding and in particular the link to gene regulation requires a cross-disciplinary approach that combines the new high-resolution techniques with computational modeling of chromatin and chromosomes. In this perspective article, we first present how the copolymer theoretical framework can account for the genome compartmentalization. We then suggest, in a second part, that compartments may act as a "nanoreactor," increasing the robustness of either activation or repression by enhancing the local concentration of regulators. We conclude with the need to develop a new framework, namely the "living chromatin" model that will allow to explicitly investigate the coupling between spatial compartmentalization and gene regulation.
Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Polímeros
/
Modelos Moleculares
/
Núcleo Celular
/
Redes Reguladoras de Genes
Límite:
Animals
/
Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Chromosome Res
Asunto de la revista:
BIOLOGIA MOLECULAR
Año:
2017
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
Francia
Pais de publicación:
Países Bajos