Collaboration between scientists at Cambridge University and the
Babraham Institute has demonstrated a new technique that will
significantly improve scientists’ ability to perform epigenetics
research and help unlock the door to understanding how cells
develop and function. Epigenetics is a branch of genetics that
studies modifications to the DNA which affect gene activity. The
research, published in the journal Science has important
implications for stem cell research and the development of
regenerative medicines. All the cells in the body have the same
DNA sequence (genome), but it is how this DNA sequence is
interpreted that results in the formation of different cell
types. Epigenetic changes control how a DNA sequence is
interpreted, specifically how different genes are switched on
and off in different cell types, tissues and organs. One of the
most studied epigenetic marks is the addition of a very small
chemical modification called a methyl group to DNA, which turns
associated genes off. Methyl groups a