Highlights from the May 2009 Issue of DNA and Cell Biology

摘要

Work in this month’s issue of DNA and Cell Biology explores the mechanisms underlying an epigeneticnregulatory control of development. Mouse embryonic stem cells lacking CXXC finger protein 1 (CFP1) fail tondifferentiate due to reduced DNA methylation and exhibit reduced DNA methyltransferase (DNMT1) activity.nButler et al. demonstrate the mechanisms behind reduction of DNMT1 expression in their work ‘‘DNMT1 ProteinnSynthesis is Reduced in CFP1-Deficient Embryonic Stem Cells.’’ They found that global protein synthesis wasndecreased in stem cells lacking CFP1, and DNMT1 protein half-life was also reduced. The findings of Butler andncolleagues point to a new role for CFP1 in translation initiation regulation