An international consortium(FANTOM4) of scientists, including researchers from The University of Queensland (UQ), have discovered how genes are controlled in mammals, as well as the tiniest genetic element ever found.
FANTOM4 has shown that instead of having one or a few 'master regulator' genes that control growth and development, there is a sophisticated network of regulatory elements that subtly influence the ways in which genes are expressed in different cells in the body. This information can be used to discover how cells transform from rapidly-growing 'blank slate' cells to mature cells with a specific function It can also help with some medical and biological researches such as determining why some cells turn cancerous, or how to control stem cells for use in regenerative medicine
In addition, they discovered the tiny RNAs, the smallest genetic elements yet known, which are linked to the expression of individual genes. Tiny RNAs are 18 nucleotides long, 100 times smaller than an average gene. They had previously been noticed by researchers but thought to be some degraded segments of larger genetic elements. FANTOM4 consortium found that they were too common and too specifically distributed to be ignored. Now they have been proven to be widely associated with promoters that switch on genes, and they may have a role in gene activation. The researchers of consortium hope to use tiny RNAs to artificially control gene expression once their role is understood more explicitly.
Another paper investigated retrotransposons, genetic elements that move around the genome and leave copies of themselves behind. They were thought to be only active in cancer cells and cells that turn into eggs and sperm, but the results of the consortium showed that retrotransposons that can no longer move around the genome may still be expressed in a broad range of cells, and thereby regulate the expression of nearby genes.
FANTOM4 has shown that instead of having one or a few 'master regulator' genes that control growth and development, there is a sophisticated network of regulatory elements that subtly influence the ways in which genes are expressed in different cells in the body. This information can be used to discover how cells transform from rapidly-growing 'blank slate' cells to mature cells with a specific function It can also help with some medical and biological researches such as determining why some cells turn cancerous, or how to control stem cells for use in regenerative medicine
In addition, they discovered the tiny RNAs, the smallest genetic elements yet known, which are linked to the expression of individual genes. Tiny RNAs are 18 nucleotides long, 100 times smaller than an average gene. They had previously been noticed by researchers but thought to be some degraded segments of larger genetic elements. FANTOM4 consortium found that they were too common and too specifically distributed to be ignored. Now they have been proven to be widely associated with promoters that switch on genes, and they may have a role in gene activation. The researchers of consortium hope to use tiny RNAs to artificially control gene expression once their role is understood more explicitly.
Another paper investigated retrotransposons, genetic elements that move around the genome and leave copies of themselves behind. They were thought to be only active in cancer cells and cells that turn into eggs and sperm, but the results of the consortium showed that retrotransposons that can no longer move around the genome may still be expressed in a broad range of cells, and thereby regulate the expression of nearby genes.
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