How does our DNA store the massive amount of information needed to build a human being? And what happens when it’s stored incorrectly? Jesse Dixon, MD, PhD, has spent years studying the way this genome is folded in 3D space, knowing that dysfunctional folding can cause cancers and developmental disorders, including autism-related disorders. 

New research from Dixon’s lab adds to a growing understanding that the genome’s 3D organization is constantly in flux. Using different types of human cells, the lab showed that this dynamic genome unfolding and refolding process occurs at different rates in different parts of the genome, which, in turn, influences gene regulation and expression. The findings may point to targets for blocking the dysfunctional folding that leads to cancers and developmental disorders. 

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