Publications by authors named "S Rutherford Colmenares"
The recruitment of Heterochromatin Protein 1 (HP1) partners is essential for heterochromatin assembly and function, yet our knowledge regarding their organization in heterochromatin remains limited. Here we show that interactors engage the Drosophila HP1 (HP1a) dimer through a degenerate and expanded form of the previously identified PxVxL motif, which we now term HP1a Access Codes (HACs). These HACs reside in disordered regions, possess high conservation among Drosophila homologs, and contain alternating hydrophobic residues nested in a cluster of positively charged amino acids.
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- DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) are critical to repair for maintaining genome stability, with different chromatin types potentially requiring distinct repair mechanisms.
- In a study involving Drosophila melanogaster, it was found that DSBs in facultative heterochromatin quickly move outside of specialized structures called polycomb bodies and this movement corresponds with a decrease in a specific histone mark, H3K27me3.
- The research indicates that the histone demethylase dUtx is essential for this process, as its absence disrupts both the movement of DSBs and the completion of repair via homologous recombination in heterochromatic regions.
Cells employ diverse strategies to repair double-strand breaks (DSBs), a dangerous form of DNA damage that threatens genome integrity. Eukaryotic nuclei consist of different chromatin environments, each displaying distinct molecular and biophysical properties that can significantly influence the DSB-repair process. DSBs arising in the compact and silenced heterochromatin domains have been found to move to the heterochromatin periphery in mouse and Drosophila to prevent aberrant recombination events.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHeterochromatin is a gene-poor and repeat-rich genomic compartment universally found in eukaryotes. Despite its low transcriptional activity, heterochromatin plays important roles in maintaining genome stability, organizing chromosomes, and suppressing transposable elements. Given the importance of these functions, it is expected that genes involved in heterochromatin regulation would be highly conserved.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHeterochromatin is a gene-poor and repeat-rich genomic compartment universally found in eukaryotes. Despite its low transcriptional activity, heterochromatin plays important roles in maintaining genome stability, organizing chromosomes, and suppressing transposable elements (TEs). Given the importance of these functions, it is expected that the genes involved in heterochromatin regulation would be highly conserved.
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