EMBO Associate Member
Princeton University | United States
EMBO 2017
My lab studies the activation and repression of gene expression in the Drosophila embryo. We characterized the eve stripe 2 enhancer, proposed an affinity threshold model for the maternal Dorsal gradient, and identified mechanisms of transcriptional robustness including paused Pol II and shadow enhancers. We also use the tadpole of the proto-vertebrate, Ciona intestinalis, to study the evolutionary origins of neural crest and cranial placodes.
Keywords: Transcriptional bursts / enhancer DNAs / shadow enhancers / transcriptional precision / embryonic patterning
Subject area(s): Chromatin & Transcription | Development | Differentiation & Death