Co-Coordinators: Fátima Gebauer and Luciano Di Croce

The interests of the program span from mechanisms of gene expression, epigenetic and epitranscriptomic regulation to the molecular basis of cellular decisions involved in tissue homeostasis and cancer.

Mechanistic and biological studies of gene regulation span the whole pathway of gene expression, including chromatin organization, transcription and splicing in the cell nucleus, mRNA translation in the cytoplasm, as well as signaling and RNA modification. Transcriptional regulation groups study chromatin structure and regulation mediated by steroid hormones (Dr. Miguel Beato), effects of dosage imbalance of chromosome 21 (Dr. Susana de la Luna), epigenetic mechanisms in cancer and stem cells (Dr. Luciano Di Croce), single cell epigenomics in lymphomas (Dr. Renee Beekman), and epigenetic regulation of cancer metabolism (Dr. Sara Sdelci). RNA biology groups study the identification and control of RNA modifications (Dr. Eva Novoa), the regulation of alternative splicing (Dr. Juan Valcárcel) and the regulation of mRNA translation (Dr. Fátima Gebauer).

Cell reprogramming studies include differentiation and trans-differentiation in the hematopoietic system (Dr. Thomas Graf), somatic cell reprogramming and tissue regeneration by cell fusion (Dr. Maria Pia Cosma) and epigenetic reprogramming in embryogenesis and the germline (Dr. Bernhard Payer).

Mechanisms of gene expression control, cell reprogramming and differentiation are studied in the context of a variety of diseases including cancer (leukemia, lymphoma, pancreatic and lung adenocarcinomas, gliomas, melanoma, breast cancer), retinal degeneration, Down syndrome and fertility disorders.

SOCIAL ACTIVITIES: The program’s retreat, November 2019 (pictures and video)

SOCIAL ACTIVITIES: The program’s retreat, November 2016 (pictures)

SOCIAL ACTIVITIES: The program’s retreat, October 2013 (pictures)