The Harvard Gazette

genomic imprinting

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Led by Catherine Dulac, the Higgins Professor of Molecular and Cellular Biology, a team of researchers has identified more than 40 new “imprinted” genes, in which either the maternal or paternal copy of a gene is expressed while the other is silenced. The findings, described in a recent paper in eLife, reveal how genomic imprinting can dramatically expand biological diversity, and could have important implications for understanding the brain.

Expanding the brain

Research identifies more than 40 new imprinted genes

Health|

DateJuly 29, 2015December 15, 2017

Parvalbumin cells (blue) and one of the genes (red) that regulate their maturation in the cerebral cortex of a mouse. The connections made to and from these cells control critical periods of brain development and are vulnerable to mental illness. The Conte Center aims to map the wiring diagram, imprinted gene network, and functional maturation of these pivotal neurons using state-of-the-art microscopy and bioinformatics approaches.

Neurons in youth

Harvard study of brain development may shed light on disorders

Science|

DateNovember 17, 2011April 15, 2019