Today in the journal Science, a team of biologists led by Robert A. Martienssen, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) Professor and HHMI-GBMI Investigator, presents evidence supporting a theory that places in profound perspective a battle within all cells between mechanisms that prompt them to replicate their DNA and those that enable them to transcribe their DNA into RNA. “It’s an inherent choice that has to be managed, and accounts for much of what our cellular machinery is doing at any given time,” Martienssen says.
Read the related story: Focus on quiescent cells brings to light the essential role of RNA interference in transcription control