September 20th, 2020.

Congratulations to Jeannette Reinig, Frank Ruge, Martin Howard and Leonie Ringrose

Their paper A theoretical model of Polycomb/Trithorax action unites stable epigenetic memory and dynamic regulation was published in Nature Communications today!

Modelling and experiments provide a coherent framework for the life stories of different PRE/TREs

A large gap in our understanding of PRE/TRE behaviours has been the lack of a coherent theoretical framework that links developmental timing and transcriptional regulation to PRE/TRE activity. In this paper we developed a mathematical model comprising a PRE/TRE coupled to a promoter and including Drosophila developmental timing. With minimal parameter differences, the model can generate a rich repertoire of outputs and can recapitulate experimental data for both memory and dynamic regulation. Thus, the model provides a unifying theoretical framework for profoundly different experimentally observed modes of PcG/TrxG-mediated gene regulation. This work has broad implications for understanding the molecular nature of locus-specific and developmental differences in stability and flexibility of genome-wide PcG/TrxG regulation.