Babraham Special EU Studentship: Sequence based prediction and identification of imprinted genes

Abstracts are not currently available in GtR for all funded research. This is normally because the abstract was not required at the time of proposal submission, but may be because it included sensitive information such as personal details.

We inherit genes from our fathers and mothers and for most of our genes the copies we receive from either parent are equally active. An important exception to this general rule occurs in a process called genomic imprinting, which results in one copy of some genes being deliberately silenced. These imprinted genes are important in determining how babies grow and how infants adapt their physiology to life outside the womb. Imprinted genes behave in this manner because they are marked in different ways in the male and female germ cells (eggs and sperm). How these marks are made in germ cells and how they are then maintained in the baby and into adult life is not understood, but is important to find out. If the marking process goes wrong problems in fertility or developmental abnormalities may arise; incorrect imprinting is also a cause of cancer and may contribute to other ageing related diseases. Correct imprint marks are also important for the maintenance of stem cells. In this project, we are investigating the signals in our genes that put these marks in place and the processes needed to maintain them throughout life.

unavailable