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The Chromatin and Epigenetics EMBO conference is a biannual event that gathers together top speakers covering the latest advances in chromatin and epigenetics research.

会议手册的前面封面是Dr Alan Wolffe（1959-2001）一位科学家在他的生命的最后三年中发表了许多有关表观遗传学的文章，包括DNA甲基化在调节正常状态和病理状态中基因表达中的作用，染色质重塑在转录抑制和激活中，以及疾病中基因不调节的分子机制，包括癌症和RETT综合征。

科学计划与相同的线条大致相同。它被组织成多个课程，即染色质调节，发育表观遗传学，制造和破坏异染色质，组蛋白修饰，RNA和代谢，转录和转录后调节，核结构和重塑染色质。

特别有趣的是关于表观遗传重编程和调控的一系列谈判，包括脊椎动物发育过程中的HOX基因调节，小鼠发育中的表观遗传重编程。

My personal favorite was a fascinating talk on therole of epigenetic regulation on social behavior in ants, describing work byDr Roberto Bonasio和colleagues from the University of Pennsylvania.

Bonasio explained how ant societies are very sophisticated, with different groups (or castes) arising from a single genome and having different roles. Each caste is distinct in appearance (morphology) and has different behavioral traits. Female embryos become皇后or one of a number of different types of worker ants. The developmental path of each individual ant is – strikingly – completely independent from their genetic makeup. The differences between each ant caste (their phenotype) must therefore be due to epigenetic modifications (i.e. not explained by changes in DNA sequence).

Bonasio’s group have sequenced the genome for the ant species;Camponotus floridanus，获得全基因组DNA甲基化和染色质结构谱。与其他一些蚂蚁物种不同，Harpegnathos皇后可以用工人蚂蚁代替，然后发展皇后的行为和表型特征。这种独特的行为使研究人员能够研究表观遗传途径在调节脑功能和行为中的作用。通过在从工人到皇后过渡之前，之中和之后获得Harpegnathos蚂蚁的基因表达谱neuropeptidehas been identified that that stimulates worker ant behaviors such as foraging while blocking the transition to queen status. This is exciting as it’s the first time a neuropeptide, and transcriptional regulation in general, is shown to play a role in caste determination and caste-specific behavior in a social organism.

The other main highlights of the conference were, as expected, the two Keynote lectures.

Imaging the 3D organization of the genome and transcriptome in single cells

Professor Xiaowei Zhuang，哈佛大学介绍了一些超分辨率成像和多重成像fluorescent in situ hybridization(FISH) imaging methods developed in her laboratory that have produced high resolution images of the 3D conformation of chromatin in the cell nucleus. She demonstrated, with the help of a collection of beautiful images, how these methods have been used to, for example, confirm that chromatin is organized into large contact domains called TADS (拓扑关联的域), but folding in a way that differs from theclassical fractal-globule modelat large length scales.

Merfish已帮助绘制了复杂组织中RNA内部RNA的分布和不同的细胞类型。

单细胞转录组成像方法称为多路复用误差鱼（Merfish) was also described, Professor Zhuang presented a number of applications for the technique, including mapping the distribution of RNA inside cells and also distinct cell types in complex tissues.

Epigenetics and Rett syndrome

The very last talk presented at the conference was one by阿德里安·伯德教授来自爱丁堡大学。Rett syndromeis a devastating autistic spectrum disorder that affects the development of female children; it is very rarely seen in males. Sufferers seem normal at first, with symptoms typically appearing around the age of 2 to 3.

伯德教授发现了这种疾病的原因，即所谓的rett基因的突变MeCP2.他解释说，MECP2蛋白与DNA位点结合，DNA位点可以通过DNA甲基化化学改变，这对基因表达有影响。尽管确实存在其他假设，但人们认为MECP2蛋白的主要功能是以阻断转录的方式影响DNA甲基化。这得到了蛋白质的生化和遗传分析，以及导致病情的基因的不同突变的数量。MECP2缺陷导致许多严重的神经系统疾病的发展，当然包括RETT综合征。

然而，演讲中最有趣的部分是使用小鼠作为模型的非常视觉示范，即该疾病在视频的帮助下可以治愈。

Video 1 shows a MeCP2-deficient mouse with Rett Syndrome like symptoms.

(Taken from theNew ScientistYouTube频道 - URL https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhxu25ntgf4）

视频2显示了相同的MeCP2-replaceme后鼠标nt therapy.

(Taken from theNew ScientistYouTube channel – url https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVUq5C9LS-4)

总的来说，我当然会向对该领域感兴趣的任何人推荐这次会议，我期待该计划在两年内。