Stem cell populations become exhausted with advancing age, unwilling to respond to the usual signaling and generate new daughter somatic cells to support tissue function. This is accompanied by changes in the expression of genes in these cell populations, a complex web of relationships that is far from fully explored. Gene expression is determined by the structure of chromatin, the packaged DNA in the cell nucleus. Epigenetic modifications to that structure occur constantly, changing its shape. This epigenetic regulation unfolds portions of the c…
In Search of the Causes of Intestinal Stem Cell Exhaustion
Stem cell populations become exhausted with advancing age, unwilling to respond to the usual signaling and generate new daughter somatic cells to support tissue function. This is accompanied by changes in the expression of genes in these cell populations, a complex web of relationships that is far from fully explored. Gene expression is determined by the structure of chromatin, the packaged DNA in the cell nucleus. Epigenetic modifications to that structure occur constantly, changing its shape. This epigenetic regulation unfolds portions of the c…