MCM molecules impede the formation of DNA loops

The entire genomic material of a cell must be packed into a tiny cell nucleus in such a way, that on the one hand, it can be stored in an organized manner and, on the other hand, it can be transcribed, duplicated or repaired ...

How new loops in DNA packaging help us make diverse antibodies

Diversity is good, especially when it comes to antibodies. It's long been known that a gene assembly process called V(D)J recombination allows our immune system to mix and match bits of genetic code, generating new antibodies ...

Enzyme structure reveals how DNA is opened up for transcription

DNA is a molecular manual that contains instructions for building life. And, like any manual, DNA isn't all that useful if it remains unopened and unread. In order to transcribe DNA, the enzyme RNA polymerase, or RNAP, must ...

Researchers map human genome in 4-D as it folds

A multi-institutional team spanning Baylor College of Medicine, Rice University, Stanford University and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard has created the first high-resolution 4-D map of genome folding, tracking an ...

The contrarian dance of DNA

Have a close-up look at DNA; you'll see it wiggles in the oddest way. Put more scientifically, a piece of DNA's movements are often counterintuitive to those of objects in our everyday grasp. Take a rod of rubber, for example. ...

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