McGill scientists' discovery has implications for cancer, gene therapy and biotechnology. Nature the discovery of a new human gene that encodes a novel activity believed to be critical for reprogramming cells. The team led by Dr Moshe Szyf, an associate professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, included Dr Sanjoy Bhattacharya, a postdoctoral fellow in the laboratory, and doctoral candidates Shyam Ramchandani and Nadia Cervoni.
Cells are the smallest unit of living organisms.
Each cell carries within it all the genetic information required to build a complete organism. However, as they develop, different cell types silence or activate different parts of their genetic information so that each cell performs its specific function in the whole organism. Part of this process is controlled by enzymes that modify the DNA, DNA methyltransferases. To utilize the full potential of biotechnology one has to be able to unlock these genetic programs. Dr Szyf explains that early in development the pattern of modification inherited from the parents is erased so that the developing embryo can form new programs.