Unraveling the chromosome higher-order structures in the transcriptional regulation of hematopoiesis by chromosome conformation capture

Abstract

Emerging evidence has demonstrated that genomes are organized into higher-order structures in vivo and long range interactions between genomic regions largely contribute to the regulation of gene expression. Hematopoiesis, orchestrated by the precise spatial regulation and organization of hematopoietic transcription factors, serves as a good model for exploring these issues. The chromosome conformation capture (3C) methodology and its high throughput based technology provide an innovative solution for analyzing the regulation of functional elements through inter-chromosomal and intra-chromosomal interactions, and contacts of functional components in nuclei, thus leading to a more comprehensive understanding of human genome and gene expression. This review focuses on the recent progress of 3C and its derivatives, and their applications in unraveling the mechanisms of transcriptional regulation in hematopoiesis.