In this episode of the Epigenetics Podcast, we talked with Sarah Marzi from the UK Dementia Research Institute at Imperial College London about her work on epigenetic changes in Alzheimer's Disease, and comparing CUT&Tag to ENCODE ChIP-Seq using limited cell samples. The interview discusses Sarah Marzi's work on ChIP-Seq experiments and their significance in understanding Alzheimer's disease from an epigenetic perspective. The discussion touches on the widespread dysregulation and changes in acetylation, particularly in genes associated with Alzheimer's risk, providing insights into potent ..read more

In this episode of the Epigenetics Podcast, we talked with Upasna Sharma from UC Santa Cruz about her work on a number of interesting projects on H2A.Z and telomeres, the impact of paternal diet on offspring metabolism, and the role of small RNAs in sperm. In this interview Upasna Sharma discusses her work on the study of the paternal diet's impact on offspring metabolism. She reveals the discovery of small non-coding RNAs, particularly tRNA fragments, in mature mammalian sperm that may carry epigenetic information to the next generation. She explains the specific alterations in tRNA fragment ..read more

In this episode of the Epigenetics Podcast, we talked with Weiwei Dang from Baylor College of Medicine about his work on molecular mechanisms of aging and the role of H3K36me3 and cryptic transcription in cellular aging. The team in the Weiwei Dang lab explored the connection between histone marks, specifically H4K16 acetylation and H3K36 methylation, and aging. Dr. Dang describes how the lab conducted experiments by mutating H4K16 to determine its effect on lifespan. They observed that the mutation to glutamine accelerated the aging process and shortened lifespan, providing causal evidence fo ..read more

In this episode of the Epigenetics Podcast, we talked with Mitch Guttman from California Institute of Technology about his work on characterising the 3D interactions of the genome using Split-Pool Recognition of Interactions by Tag Extension (SPRITE). Mitch Guttman discusses his exploration of the long non-coding RNA Xist, which plays a crucial role in X chromosome inactivation. He explains how they discovered that Xist is present everywhere in the nucleus, not just in specific locations on the X chromosome. Through their research, they identified critical proteins like SHARP that are involved ..read more

In this episode of the Epigenetics Podcast, we talked with Sam Buckberry from the Telethon Kids Institute about his work on gene imprinting, sex-biased gene expression, DNA regulatory landscapes, and genomics in the indigenous population of Australia. Sam Buckberry's research career started with working on the imprinting of H19, IGF2, and IGF2R genes in the placenta. We talk about the controversy surrounding the imprinting of IGF2R and how his study used pyrosequencing to quantify gene expression. We also discuss Sam's work on sex-biased gene expression in the placenta and the identification o ..read more

In this episode of the Epigenetics Podcast, we talked with Kyle Eagen from Baylor College of Medicine about his work on BET Proteins and their role in chromosome folding and compartmentalization. In the early days of his research career Dr. Eagen made use of genomics and microscopy to study chromosomes, particularly polytene chromosomes in Drosophila. The correlation between the folding patterns detected by Hi-C and polytene bands highlights the similarities between the two, bridging traditional cytology with modern NGS methods. This work formed the basis of Kyle's thesis and sparked his inter ..read more

In this episode of the Epigenetics Podcast, we talked with Francesca Telese from UC San Diego and Jessica Zhou from Cold Spring Harbour about their work on the molecular underpinnings of human addiction. Francesca Telese worked on neuronal enhancers and their pivotal role in governing gene activity. She sheds light on her remarkable findings concerning the epigenetic signature of neuronal enhancers that are intricately involved in synaptic plasticity. Jessica Zhou joined Francesca Telese's lab as a PhD student where she worked on elucidating the effects of chronic cannabis use on memory and be ..read more

In this episode of the Epigenetics Podcast, we talked with Tanja Vogel from the University Clinics Freiburg about her work on epigenetic modifications in stem cells during central nervous system development. During our discussion, Dr. Vogel shared that she and her team have investigated H3K79 methylation and its functional significance, which remains a topic of debate in the scientific community. They’ve also investigated the role of DOT1L in neural development and its implications for neuronal networks, as disrupting DOT1L can lead to conditions such as epilepsy and schizophrenia. They explor ..read more

In this episode of the Epigenetics Podcast, we talked with Maria Gambetta from the University of Lausanne about her work on the function of insulators in 3D genome folding. Maria Gambetta focuses on investigating 3D contact dynamics between enhancers and promoters, providing insights into tissue-specific gene activation. The team used capture-C to analyze dynamic looping events, emphasizing the significance of accessible chromatin peaks in enhancer-promoter interactions. Furthermore, they focused on gene insulation and CTCF's role in forming topologically associating domains in Drosophila. Hi ..read more

In this episode of the Epigenetics Podcast, we talked with Jason Carroll from the Cambridge Research Institute about his work on contribution of estrogen receptor to breast cancer progression. The Podcast centers around the crucial role of the forkhead protein FOXA1 in breast cancer. FOXA1 acts as a pioneer transcription factor, facilitating gene regulation by recruiting nuclear receptors to chromatin, profoundly influencing gene expression in various breast cancer subtypes. The FOXA1-positive subtype of triple-negative breast cancer, despite being estrogen receptor-negative, shares gene expre ..read more