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.
Berkeley Scientists’ Uniform Droplets Could Improve Emulsion PCR for Next-Gen Systems
The technology, which was described in the May 15 issue of Analytical Chemistry, produces nanoliter droplets of uniform size that can be used for sequencing template preparation as well as single-cell genetic analysis. It may increase the yield, amplicon length, and uniformity of emulsion PCR, a process used by several second-generation sequencing systems.
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