Phase transitions in the nucleus of cells
Seminario del 21/11/2024 (Mario Nicodemi)
SPEAKER: Mario Nicodemi,
Full Professor at the University of Naples “Federico II”, Italy
TITLE: "Phase transitions in the nucleus of cells"
ABSTRACT: The sequencing of human DNA has provided us with the catalogue of our genes. Yet, the essential question of how our genome operates remains unanswered. Why is a gene active in certain tissues but not in others? What activates an oncogene that has been dormant for decades? Recent discoveries have revealed that genes control their activity by establishing physical contacts with distant regulatory regions along the DNA. So, it is the three-dimensional architecture of our genome that determines the genes to be turned on or off, thereby shaping the fate of a cell. These insights have transformed our view of DNA: it is no longer sufficient to decipher its linear sequence; to comprehend its function, we must also reconstruct its complex three-dimensional structure in the nucleus of cells. In my talk, I review some of our recent findings, combining polymer physics, computer sciences and experiments of molecular biology, that showed that chromosome structure and function are governed by phase transitions [1-6]. These findings ground the comprehension of the very functioning of the genome on the physics of complex systems, and can be employed to develop diagnostic tools and treatments for genetic diseases, such as congenital disorders and cancer [7-10].
REFERENCES
[1] R.A. Beagrie et al., Nature 543, 519 (2017)
[2] M. Barbieri et al., Nature SMB 24, 515 (2017)
[3] S. Bianco et al., Nature Genetics 50, 662 (2018).
[4] M. Conte et al., Nature Com. 11, 3289 (2020).
[5] M. Conte et al., Nature Com. 13, 4070 (2022).
[6] B.K. Kragesteen et al., Nature Genetics 50, 1463 (2018)
[7] G.I. Dellino et al., Nature Genetics 51, 1011 (2019)
[8] W. Winick-Ng et al., Nature 599, 684 (2021)
[9] L. Fiorillo et al., Nature Meth. 18, 482 (2021).
[10] A.D. Pourmorady et al., Nature 625, 181 (2024)
BIO: Mario Nicodemi is Full Professor of Theoretical Physics at the University of Naples Federico II and Einstein Visiting Professor at the Max Delbrück Center in Berlin. For his scientific discoveries at the frontier between physics and biology he was awarded in 2016 the Einstein BIH Fellowship by the Einstein Foundation, and in 2022 the Occhialini Medal and Prize by the UK Institute of Physics and the Italian Physical Society. He has previously held a professorship at the UK Complexity Science Centre at the University of Warwick, and worked at Imperial College London and at the École Supérieure ESPCI in Paris. He coordinates the Theoretical Physics group at the Italian Institute of Nuclear Physics (INFN) in Naples and the INFN National Project (IS) on Biological Physics. At Federico II, he leads the University’s Task Force on Computational Biology. He is also a member of numerous international research panels, including the 4D Nucleome consortium of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in the USA, the Berlin Institute of Health in Germany, and the Agence Nationale de la Recherche in France.
DATE/TIME: Thursday 21 November 2024, at 2.30pm CET.
LOCATION: Accademia Pontaniana, Via Mezzocannone 8, 80134, Napoli,
The colloquium will also be broadcast online, on Zoom.
Meeting ID: 841 4421 2706 | Passcode: 656302
- Programma
- Ospite
- Participante
- Previsione
- Commenti
I dati meteorologici non sono attualmente disponibili per questa località
Bollettino meteorologico
In corso stec_replace_today_date
stec_replace_current_summary_text
stec_replace_current_temp °stec_replace_current_temp_units
Vento stec_replace_current_wind stec_replace_current_wind_units stec_replace_current_wind_direction
umidità stec_replace_current_humidity %
Sente-se como stec_replace_current_feels_like °stec_replace_current_temp_units
Previsione
Data
Clima
Temperatura
Next 24 Hours
Offerto da openweathermap.org
