Christopher Ellison, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Department of Genetics
Rutgers University
Piscataway, NJ

Mutations that alter gene expression play an important role both in the evolution of novel phenotypes as well as in disease states. While it is well-known that mutations in cis-regulatory sequences are frequently associated with altered gene expression patterns, the relationship between changes in 3D genome architecture and changes in gene expression is less clear. My lab uses a comparative genomics approach to study conservation and divergence in 3D genome organization and gene expression across ~25 million years of evolution in Drosophila. We are also working to understand the complex evolutionary dynamics between transposable elements (TEs) and their host genomes, with a focus on how small RNA pathways influence the expression of both host genes and TEs. In this seminar, I will describe our work suggesting that there are various functional subtypes of Topologically Associating Domains (TADs) which follow different evolutionary trajectories and share two examples of intragenomic conflict between transposons and the small RNA pathways that target them for silencing.

Join Zoom Meeting | Meeting ID: 986 4197 9928 | Passcode: Genetics

Host: Department of Genetics
Phone: 848-445-1638
Email: carmona@dls.rutgers.edu