Summary of the science
Hematologic malignancies are a type of cancer (e.g. leukemia and lymphoma) that begins in blood-forming tissue, such as the bone marrow, or in immune cells. Transcription is the process whereby genes (sections of DNA carrying information) are replicated into RNA, essentially the messenger for DNA, before being transformed into proteins. When transcription goes wrong, it can cause excessive, insufficient, or incorrect proteins to be made, which can interfere with the cell's function and lead to cancer. Roeder aims to understand how transcription of around 20,000 genes in the human genome is specifically regulated to ensure that the correct proteins are made to fulfil the needs of each specific cell. Roeder's research focuses on investigating the underlying mechanisms that play a role in this regulation, including transcription factors and epigenetic factors. Transcription factors are proteins that bind to DNA and can either turn genes on or off, depending on which proteins need to be produced. Epigenetic factors do not bind directly to DNA, but do affect how the DNA is read during transcription.
About the research
Hematologic malignancies, such as leukemia and lymphoma, arise from blood-forming tissues and immune cells, and abnormal transcription regulation plays a crucial role in the formation of these cancers. Roeder's lab focuses on understanding the mechanisms underlying this regulation, and the role that transcription factors and epigenetic factors play in the process.
They have pioneered an experimental approach, whereby transcription is replicated within a test tube and where the genes and factors have been cloned from cells. The essence of transcription, including the structure, function and activity is then analysed using varying types of analysis.
About the illustration
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