Decoding transcriptional regulation

In higher eukaryotes, genes are expressed dynamically in complex spatial and temporal patterns, which are progressively refined to set up body plans and define specific cell-types. The information about when and where each gene is to be expressed is encoded in the sequences of promoter-, enhancer- and silencer regions and realized by transcription factor and cofactor proteins.
I am presenting our work towards understanding the how this regulatory information is sequence-encoded and how cells utilize this information with transcription factor and cofactor proteins. We characterize regulatory sequences by functional screens in cell lines and by a genome-scale candidate testing approach in developing Drosophila embryos. We then use deep-learning approaches to model the sequence-to-function relationship for enhancers and build synthetic enhancers de novo. We also employ functional screens, motif analysis and mutagenesis, biochemistry and mass spectrometry to dissect functions and mechanisms of regulatory elements and transcription in flies and mammals.