Lesson plan
Bookmarking
Bookmarking (also "gene bookmarking" or "mitotic bookmarking") refers to a potential mechanism of transmission of gene expression programs through cell division. During mitosis, gene transcription is silenced and most transcription factors are removed from chromatin. The term bookmarking compares transcription to reading from a book. The pause in transcription during mitosis is like closing the book. "Molecular bookmarks" are the factors that allow transcription to resume in an orderly fashion in newborn cells following mitosis (when the book is re-opened). Bookmarks fulfill the following criteria: * at some point prior to the onset of mitosis, the promoters of genes that exist in a transcription-competent state become "marked" in some way, * this "mark" persists both during and after mitosis, and * the marking transmits gene expression memory by preventing the mitotic compaction of DNA at this locus, or by facilitating reassembly of transcription complexes on the promoter, or both.
Article summary
Bookmarking (also "gene bookmarking" or "mitotic bookmarking") refers to a potential mechanism of transmission of gene expression programs through cell division. During mitosis, gene transcription is silenced and most transcription factors are removed from chromatin. The term bookmarking compares transcription to reading from a book. The pause in transcription during mitosis is like closing the book. "Molecular bookmarks" are the factors that allow transcription to resume in an orderly fashion in newborn cells following mitosis (when the book is re-opened). Bookmarks fulfill the following criteria: * at some point prior to the onset of mitosis, the promoters of genes that exist in a transcription-competent state become "marked" in some way, * this "mark" persists both during and after mitosis, and * the marking transmits gene expression memory by preventing the mitotic compaction of DNA at this locus, or by facilitating reassembly of transcription complexes on the promoter, or both.
Key claims
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Discussion questions
- Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
- Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
- If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?
Bibliography
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Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.