WEHI researchers have revealed how an ‘accordion effect’ is critical to switching off genes, in a study that transforms the fundamentals of what we know about gene silencing.
The finding expands our understanding of how we switch genes on and off to make the different cell types in our bodies, as we develop in the womb.
It also offers a new way to potentially harness gene silencing in the future, to treat or reverse the progression of a broad range of diseases including cancer, congenital and infectious diseases.
