Chromatin

Contemporary views on the structure and function of chromatin are presented and the history of the development of these ideas as well as the nature of the nucleic acid and protein components of chromatin are reviewed. The structure of chromatin is studied at several levels, and its modes of transcription and replication are analyzed. Chromatin provides researchers with a critical evaluation of current knowledge. It combines much information that has never before been assembled, and evaluates and interrelates it in a critical way. This has not been done before so that readers are not only provided with an overview, but with extensive references to the literature (there are about 2000 references in all).

​​​​​​​​​​​​​While there has been an increasing number of books on various aspects of epigenetics, there has been a gap over the years in books that provide a comprehensive understanding of the fundamentals of chromatin. ​Chromatin is the combination of DNA and proteins that make up the genetic material of chromosomes. Its primary function is to package DNA to fit into the cell, to strengthen the DNA to prevent damage, to allow mitosis and meiosis, and to control the expression of genes and DNA replication. The audience for this book is mainly newly established scientists ​and graduate students. Rather than going into the more specific areas of recent research on chromatin the chapters in this book give a strong, updated groundwork about the topic. Some the fundamentals that this book will cover include the structure of chromatin and biochemistry and the enzyme complexes that manage it.

The Third Edition of Chromatin: Structure and Function brings the reader up-to-date with the remarkable progress in chromatin research over the past three years. It has been extensively rewritten to cover new material on chromatin remodeling, histone modification, nuclear compartmentalization, DNA methylation, and transcriptional co-activators and co-repressors. The book is written in a clear and concise fashion, with 60 new illustrations. Chromatin: Structure and Function provides the reader with a concise and coherent account of the nature, structure, and assembly of chromatin and its active involvement in the processes of DNA transcription, replication and repair. This book consistently interrelates the structure of eukaryotic DNA with the nuclear processes it undergoes, and will be essential reading for students and molecular biologists who want to really understand how DNA works. Written in a clear and concise fashion Includes 60 new illustrations Extensively rewritten Brings the reader up-to-date with the remarkable progress in chromatin research over the past three years.

The birth and the development of molecular biology and, subsequently, of genetic engineering and biotechnology cannot be separated from the advancements in our knowledge of the genetics, biochemistry and physiology of bacteria and bacter- phages. Also most of the tools employed nowadays by biotechnologists are of bacterial (or bacteriophage) origin and the playground for most of the DNA manipulations still remains within bacteria. The relative simplicity of the bacterial cell, the short gene- tion times, the well defined and inexpensive culturing conditions which characterize bacteria and the auto-catalytic process whereby a wealth of in-depth information has been accumulated throughout the years have significantly contributed to generate a large number of knowledge-based, reliable and exploitable biological systems. The subtle relationships between phages and their hosts have produced a large amount of information and allowed the identification and characterization of a number of components which play essential roles in fundamental biological p- cesses such as DNA duplication, recombination, transcription and translation. For instance, to remain within the topic of this book, two important players in the or- nization of the nucleoid, FIS and IHF, have been discovered in this way. Indeed, it is difficult to find a single fundamental biological process whose structural and functional aspects are better known than in bacteria.

Sperm DNA damage is common and has been associated with reduced rates of conception, impaired embryonic development and increased risk of miscarriage. Although the exact causes of sperm DNA damage are unknown, it is clear that infertile men possess substantially higher levels of sperm DNA damage than do fertile men. Written by leading, internationally renowned clinicians and basic scientists with expertise in sperm DNA, Sperm Chromatin: Biological and Clinical Applications in Male Infertility and Assisted Reproduction provides readers with a thoughtful and comprehensive review of the biological and clinical significance of sperm DNA damage. The work covers the fundamental principles of sperm chromatin architecture and function, the proposed modes of DNA damage and repair, the tests of sperm DNA damage, the clinical aspects of DNA damage and the impact of DNA damage on reproductive outcome. Unlike any other title on the topic, Sperm Chromatin: Biological and Clinical Applications in Male Infertility and Assisted Reproduction is an invaluable addition to the literature and will serve as an indispensable resource for basic scientists with an interest in sperm biology and for urologists, gynecologists, reproductive endocrinologists, and embryologists working in the field of infertility.

This book includes a collection of articles with the broad theme of disease connection to chromatin structure and function. It elaborates on the molecular pharmacology of the drugs targeting chromatin structure and its components. The book contains up-to-date information about the chromatin structure and chromatin related diseases and drug functions. This work is the first endeavor to present different aspects encompassing the above theme.

More than 40 years after the discovery of the nucleosome as the fun- mental unit of chromatin, the multifaceted problem of how variations in ch- matin structure affect the activity of the eukaryotic genome has not been solved. However, during the past few years research on chromatin structure and fu- tion has gained considerable momentum, and impressive progress has been made at the level of concept development as well as filling in crucial detail. The structure of the nucleosome has been visualized at unprecedented reso- tion. Powerful multisubunit enzymes have been identified that alter histone/ DNA interactions in ways that expose regulatory sequences to factors initi- ing and regulating such nuclear processes as transcription. Though the imp- tance of posttranslational modifications of histones, notably their acetylation, has long been known, the finding that a number of bona fide regulators increase transcription by acetylating nucleosomes has lent new support to the old idea that the process of gene regulation is intimately related to the nature of the chromatin environment. A wealth of nonhistone proteins contribute to a continuum of structures with distinct biochemical properties and varying degrees of DNA condensation. Perhaps the most important conclusion from a large number of studies is a fresh appreciation of the dynamic nature of chromatin structure, the built-in flexibility providing the basis for regulation.