High Throughput Genome Engineering & Functional Genomics

Scaling up genome engineering to understand position effects
 

Most genes exist in a regulatory context containing multiple enhancers and promoters. Yet, most research treats genes and their regulatory elements as modular building blocks that always function the same. We design genetic screens and investigate gene insertions to understand genetic elements in their genomic context. For this, we adapted a Recombinase-Mediated Cassette Exchange (RMCE) approach to investigate how different promoters respond to regulatory elements at different genomic positions. This allows us to compare the function of many different promotes at the same position and study how the specific insertion site influences promoter function. We also study retroviruses, where we investigate a how the “random” proviral integration site in the genome affects its activity. With this, we hope to paint a more comprehensive picture of how genetic elements influence each other.

Involved Team Members

Blanka Majchrzycka

Igor Minia

Silvia Carvalho