His research makes use of the model eukaryote Schizosaccharomyces pombe and explores the complex post-translational modifications that take place on the carboxy-terminal domain (CTD) of the largest subunit of RNA polymerase II. Through an empirical examination of the informational properties and regulatory potential of the CTD, Dr. Karagiannis hopes to decipher the “programming language” used by eukaryotes to control aspects of gene expression.