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Welcome to |
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People
Current Funding By:
Past Funding By: Alma Holland Beers Scholarship W.C. Coker Fellowship
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The genome of any organism is an amazing piece of
biology. It is a highly efficient and
adaptive information storage, delivery and retrieval device capable of
propagating, modifying and repairing itself.
As such, understanding how genomes function is central to a broad range
of disciplines including genetics, cell biology, biochemistry, developmental
biology, and evolution. At the
broadest level our lab is interested in understanding how the constituent
parts of a genome, chromosomes, function and the dynamic processes that
influence them. To
achieve this goal we primarily use the model flowering plant Arabidopsis
thaliana. Arabidopsis has a
number of characteristics that make it a great organism to study fundamental
biological principles. It has a small
“completely” sequenced genome with only five chromosomes. It is readily amenable to genetic,
cytological and biochemical experimental approaches and it’s near world-wide
distribution makes the use of natural variation a powerful tool. Also, here in the biology department at
UNC-CH there is a particular emphasis on the use of Arabidopsis as a model
system. My
lab is primarily interested in understanding how meiotic recombination is
regulated at the genomic level in higher eukaryotes. While significant progress has been made in
understanding many of the molecular components of the recombination process
in lower eukaryotes like the yeast S.
cerevisiae, far less is known about similar functions in complex
multi-cellular organisms. Because of
the complexity of higher eukaryotic genomes, the high level of gene
duplication and divergence, the presence of DNA modification and the
organization of multiple chromosomal domains into heterochromatin the
molecules that govern meiotic recombination in these organisms are likely to
be novel and of significant biological interest. Additionally, their identification may have
practical benefits, contributing to our understanding of human disease genes
and providing useful tools for agricultural bioengineering. A
second research area in the lab is investigating the role of centromere DNA
in chromosome biology. Centromeres are
the chromosomal domains that direct segregation during cell division by
mediating a number of critical functions including: attachment of the
chromosomes to the spindle microtubules, nucleation of kinetochore proteins,
and maintenance of sister chromatid cohesion. Arabidopsis centromeres are some of the
best characterized among higher eukaryotes.
Currently the efforts in the lab are focused on obtaining a complete
definition of the DNA within the genetically defined centromeres of
Arabidopsis. |
