Genes in Drosophila centric heterochromatin

构成典型动物的不同组织都是由许多不同类型的细胞组成的；这些差异在很大程度上可以由细胞中蛋白质类型的差异来解释。蛋白质是利用我们染色体中的遗传信息（DNA）合成的，现代生物学的一个核心问题是理解这种基因表达是如何被如此精确地调节，从而使胚胎发育或组织形成。

The different tissues which make up a typical animal are all composed of many different cell types; these differences can be accounted for, in large part, by differences in the types of proteins in the cells. Proteins are made using the genetic information (DNA) in our chromosomes, and a central problem in modern biology is to understand how this gene expression can be regulated so precisely, to allow an embryo to develop, or tissues to form. Work with model organisms like the fruit fly Drosophila has provided many important insights into human development and differentiation, because all living organisms appear to share common features. Using fruit flies, we have available research tools which are not possible with mammals, which make it easier to understand how genes are controlled during differentiation and embryo development. We are studying genes from the central regions of chromosomes of Drosophila (centric heterochromatin), because these regions appear to have unusual properties: genes resident in centric heterochromatin function well, but any "normal" genes further out in the chromosome arms aren't able to function well when moved into this same environment. Our work seeks to answer basic biological questions about the basis for these differences. Our findings may also have implications for understanding other processes, including how differences in chromosome environment can affect various human disease states and cancer.