Chromatin and Chromatin Remodelling:
The function of ATP-dependent chromatin remodelling complexes
The organisation of DNA into chromatin, with its smallest unit the nucleosome, plays a role in gene regulation, replication, recombination, and repair. The chromatin forms an obstacle for a number of protein factors that need access to the DNA. Several protein complexes have been identified that change the chromatin structure and make the DNA more accessible. These complexes regulate the structure either by acetylation, phosphorylation and methylation of the histone proteins in the nucleosome, or by changing the histone-DNA contacts using ATP. The latter complexes are called ATP-dependent chomatin remodelling complexes and several different types exist.
The central question in the projects presented is to understand the function of different ATP-dependent chromatin remodelling complexes in mammalian cells. We focus on two different types of complex, the SWI/SNF family of complexes, and the ISWI-complex B-WICH. The SWI/SNF chromatin remodelling complexes are involved mainly in transcription, whereas the ISWI-complexes are involved in replication, nucleosome spacing and transcription.
