Role of chromatin in cellular differentiation.

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The formation of mature tissues or specific cells represents one of the most complicated biological processes that requires a coordinated gene expression program. The initiation of the formation of a mature tissues is controlled by not only tissue-specific transcriptional regulatory proteins, but also by important cellular modifications at several different levels, more particularly at the level of chromatin structure. The studies that I outline in this proposal are aimed at acquiring an improved understanding of how chromatin regulates genes important for cellular differentiation. This proposal will first focus on adipogenesis, a differentiation system controlled by the nuclear receptor PPAR-gamma. We will use different molecular and cellular approaches to characterise the role of chromatin structure in the regulation of gene regulated by PPAR-gamma during adipogenesis. These studies will provide novel information on the as yet poorly characterised chromatin-related molecular mechanisms leading to the formation of a multi-cellular organism.