Connection Between Epigenome, Selective Mutability, Evolution, and Human Disease
Li, Harris et al., PLoS Genetics
Researchers at the Baylor College of Medicine and elsewhere propose a "connection between the epigenome, selective mutability, evolution, and human disease" based on the findings of their study on associations of structural mutability with germline DNA methylation and with non-allelic homologous recombination mediated by low-copy repeats. "Combined evidence from four human sperm methylome maps, human genome evolution, structural polymorphisms in the human population, and previous genomic and disease studies consistently points to a strong association of germline hypomethylation and genomic instability," the Baylor-led team writes.
People Over Projects
At his Synthetic Remarks blog, Fredrik von Kieseritzky says that were he to "offer only one piece of advice to the young scientist getting ready to enter the field, it would be: Prioritize people before projects." Von Kieseritzky says this advice might seem counter-intuitive, particularly for scientists who do not consider themselves "people persons," but adds that people matter. "Say you have the chance to do diploma or graduate work for two different groups," he says — the first group conducts cutting-edge research but is led by a micro-managing PI, the other does "stuff you have never heard of before," but the PI cares for the group’s well-being. "Go for group B – without a doubt," von Kieseritzky says. "I have wasted years in A-constellations and I have been fortunate enough to be part of B-teams several times. In hindsight, the decision was ridiculously easy."