Description:

The Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Genetics presents:

Kavitha Sarma, PhD
Associate Professor
Gene Expression and Regulation Program
Wistar Institute, University of Pennsylvania

Presentation:

"Genome regulation through R-loops”

Abstract:

R-loops are co-transcriptional three stranded nucleic acid structures that accumulate on chromatin in neurological diseases and cancers and that contribute to genome instability. Using a proximity-dependent labeling system, we identified distinct classes of proteins that regulate R-loops in vivo through different mechanisms. I will present our recent work on the R-loop resolution function of the activity-dependent neuroprotective protein (ADNP), which is frequently mutated in autism spectrum disorders and overexpressed in some cancers.  Through our work on ADNP, we interrogate how R-loop accumulation, and interactions with other transcriptional repressors affect genome organization and the impact on neurodifferentiation.

Host: Dr. Shannon Lauberth, Associate Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics