Research Activities – Assistant Professor A. Fleming

YEAST CHROMATIN

Alastair Fleming, BSc PhD. (Heriot Watt)

E-mail: alastair.fleming@tcd.ie

Yeast Chromatin Group

• Our research involves using the budding yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae , as a model organism in which to study the role of chromatin remodelling during various biological processes. We are currently investigating chromatin remodelling during:
• Transcription initiation: We are investigating the regulation of Flo1 gene transcription which is under the control of the Swi-Snf co-activator and the Tup1-Ssn6 co-repressor complexes. Understanding events at the Flo1 gene promoter in yeast will help delineate the role of these evolutionary conserved complexes in human cells, where defective chromatin remodelling has been associated with developmental disorders, and diseases such as cancer.
• Transcription elongation. During transcription elongation , nucleosomes are evicted to allow passage of RNA polymerase, and reassembled in its wake to maintain chromatin structure and prevent transcription initiation from occurring within transcribed genes. We are investigating if H2B monoubiquitylation (H2Bub) coordinates the activity of histone chaperones to govern the nucleosome dynamics required for efficient transcription elongation.
• Yeast stationary phase: We are investigating the role of chromatin remodelling during yeast stationary phase ( SP ), which has emerged as an excellent model for cellular quiescence and apoptosis. When Saccharomyces cerevisiae is starved of glucose, the cells enter SP and form two developmentally distinct populations: a quiescent population of daughter cells that can re-enter the cell cycle, and a nonquiescent population of mother cells that are programmed to undergo cell death. We aim to separate these populations and examine the contribution of post-translational histone modifications towards quiescence and apoptosis.

  Research Personnel

  Research Fellows:
  Ms. Suzanne Beggs beggss@tcd.ie

  Postgraduate Researchers:
  Mr. M. Church churchm@tcd.ie
  Mr. C. Young youngco@tcd.ie