Description:

The Simpson Querrey Institute for Epigenetics presents:

Phillip Sharp, PhD

Professor
Koch Institute for Cancer Research, MIT
Nobel Laureate in Medicine, 1993

"Biochemistry and Cell Biology of Multivalent Condensates in Regulation of Gene Expression”

Liquid-liquid phase transitions in the formation and dynamic properties of condensates have led to new insights into cellular regulatory processes. Condensates are membrane-less bodies such as the nucleolus in the nucleus and stress granules in the cytoplasm which rapidly exchange components with the cellular solute. In mammalian cells, gene transcription is controlled by dynamic micro-condensates formed between distant regulatory elements and the promoter. The implications of this model in the binding of regulatory proteins, non-equilibrium processes, and new approaches to therapeutic interventions will be discussed.