Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering
Published January 1, 2021 | Version v1
Journal article Open

Nanoscale chromatin imaging and analysis platform bridges 4D chromatin organization with molecular function

Creators

  • 1. Northwestern University
  • 2. Shenzhen Bay Laboratory
  • 3. University of Chicago

Description

Extending across multiple length scales, dynamic chromatin structure is linked to transcription through the regulation of genome organization. However, no individual technique can fully elucidate this structure and its relation to molecular function at all length and time scales at both a single-cell level and a population level. Here, we present a multitechnique nanoscale chromatin imaging and analysis (nano-ChIA) platform that consolidates electron tomography of the primary chromatin fiber, optical super-resolution imaging of transcription processes, and label-free nano-sensing of chromatin packing and its dynamics in live cells. Using nano-ChIA, we observed that chromatin is localized into spatially separable packing domains, with an average diameter of around 200 nanometers, sub-megabase genomic size, and an internal fractal structure. The chromatin packing behavior of these domains exhibits a complex bidirectional relationship with active gene transcription. Furthermore, we found that properties of PDs are correlated among progenitor and progeny cells across cell division.

Notes

Due to the large number of authors, only the first 20 and the University of Chicago authors are included on the above author list. Please download the article for the complete list of authors.

Data availability

All data needed to evaluate the conclusions in the paper are present in the paper and/or the Supplementary Materials. Additional data related to this paper may be requested from the authors.

Files

sciadv.abe4310.pdf

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Additional details

Identifiers

DOI
10.1126/sciadv.abe4310
Other
oai:uchicago.tind.io:10992

Funding

National Science Foundation
National Institutes of Health
National Science Foundation
EFMA-1830969
National Institutes of Health
R01CA228272
National Institutes of Health
R01CA225002

UChicago Information

Division(s)
Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering