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Projekt Druckansicht

Organisation, ontogenetische Differenzierung und Evolution invertierter Stäbchen-Photorezeptorkerne

Antragstellerin Irina Solovei, Ph.D.
Fachliche Zuordnung Kognitive, systemische und Verhaltensneurobiologie
Biologie des Verhaltens und der Sinne
Evolution, Anthropologie
Zellbiologie
Förderung Förderung von 2010 bis 2019
Projektkennung Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Projektnummer 165603048
 
Erstellungsjahr 2020

Zusammenfassung der Projektergebnisse

The cell nucleus is a remarkably well-organized organelle with membraneless but distinct compartments of various functions. The largest of the compartments - transcriptionally active euchromatin and transcriptionally inactive heterochromatin - are spatially segregated in such a way that the active genomic loci occupy the nuclear interior, whereas silent genomic loci are preferentially associated with the nuclear periphery. This rule is broken by rod photoreceptor cells of nocturnal mammals, in which the two major compartments have inverted nuclear positions. The position and dense compaction of heterochromatin in the nuclear center converts rod nuclei into microlenses focusing light and thus facilitating nocturnal vision. As often the case in biology, when a mutation helps to understand normal processes and structures, inverted nuclei have served as a tool to unravel general principles of conventional nuclear organization. In the last 10 years, we used this model to study important mechanisms driving genome folding within the cell nucleus. (i) We have discovered two major protein complexes tethering heterochromatin to the nuclear periphery, LBR-dependent and lamin A/C-dependent tethers. (ii) By studying rod cell nuclei of the mouse carrying a human artificial chromosome, we demonstrated autonomous behavior of small genomic segments and postulated that building of a functional nucleus is largely a self-organizing process based on mutual recognition of chromosome segments belonging to the major chromatin classes. (iii) Using both biological experiments and polymer modeling, we discovered what drives nuclear compartmentalization: we showed that attractions between heterochromatic regions are essential for the phase separation of the active and inactive genome in inverted and conventional nuclei. In addition, our work paved a new way for retinal optic studies and draw attention of those researchers who use mouse retina as a model for DNA-damage and studies of other regenerative processes: the unique structure of inverted nuclei necessitates a careful translation of results received on mouse photoreceptors to human photoreceptors with conventional nuclei.

Projektbezogene Publikationen (Auswahl)

 
 

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