Daniel R Foltz
Associate Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular
Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
United States of America
Biography
Our research program is focused on the important basic question of how chromosomes are segregated during cell division to ensure the complete and accurate inheritance of the genome. Chromosome instability is a hallmark of cancer and can drive tumorigenesis. Therefore, how centromere specification is controlled is a basic biological question with great therapeutic potential. Centromeres are specified by the incorporation of a histone variant CENP-A, and stable inheritance of this locus is controlled by an epigenetic pathway. We are using a combination of cell biology, biochemical purification, and in vitro reconstitution of centromeric chromatin to discover the mechanism of epigenetic inheritance and CENP-A function across the cell cycle. The immediate goal is to determine the mechanism of epigenetic centromere inheritance, with a long-term goal of delineating the role of this process in tumorigenesis, and translate our basic understanding of the enzymes and proteins involved in this process into therapeutic approaches for targeting proliferative disease.
Research Interest
Chromosome Segregation,Molecular Biology, Cancer Biology
Publications
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HJURP interaction with the condensin II complex during G1 promotes CENP-A deposition Barnhart-Dailey MC, Trivedi P, Stukenberg PT, Foltz DR Molecular Biology of the Cell. 2017 Jan; 28(1): 54-64. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1091/mbc.E15-12-0843. PMID: 27807043 PMCID: 27807043 ISSN: 1059-1524
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a-amino trimethylation of CENP-A by NRMT is required for full recruitment of the centromere Sathyan KM, Fachinetti D, Foltz DR Nature Communications. 2017 Mar 7; 8: doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/ncomms14678. PMID: 28266506 PMCID: 28266506 ISSN: 2041-1723
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Neonatal expression of RNA-binding protein IGF2BP3 regulates the human fetal-adult megakaryocyte transition Elagib KE, Lu CH, Mosoyan G, Khalil S, Zasadzinska E, Foltz DR, Balogh P, Gru AA, Fuchs DA, Rimsza LM, Verhoeyen E, Sansó M, Fisher RP, Iancu-Rubin C, Goldfarb AN Journal of Clinical Investigation. 2017 Jun; 127(6): 2365-2377. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1172/JCI88936. PMID: 28481226 PMCID: 28481226 ISSN: 0021-9738
