Research: Computing Gene Regulation
From: Robert Karl Stonjek (rstonjek_at_bigpond.net.au)
Date: 06/19/04
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Date: Sat, 19 Jun 2004 22:41:01 +0000 (UTC)
Computing Gene Regulation
Researchers take a statistical glimpse at how gene expression is controlled
By David Secko
Eukaryotic gene regulation as a field has matured much during decades of
study, but understanding it on a genome-wide basis has started in earnest
only with the assembly of genomic data. Identifying genome-wide regulatory
motifs is problematic due to their typically low consensus sequences;
grasping which transcription factors bind to such motifs is even more
difficult, as numerous factors can bind to any one motif. Nonetheless, with
many diseases linked to malfunctions in transcription factors, and many
cellular processes relying on multitiered transcriptional regulation, this
information is invaluable.
Today, researchers combine powerful statistical techniques with their belief
that the information to regulate every gene is somewhere in the sequence
database; they seek to flush out common regulatory motifs and examine their
roles in regulating genomes. And better assays provide more information for
such approaches. Beyond understanding genomic regulation, common motifs may
lead to better modeling. It comes down to "predictive power" says Frank
Pugh, assistant professor at Pennsylvania State University; soon, sequence
alone could accurately predict how a newly discovered gene is regulated
Read the rest at The Scientist
http://www.the-scientist.com/yr2004/jun/research2_040621.html
Posted by
Robert Karl Stonjek.
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