Tissue-specific evolutionarily conserved regulation of gene expression

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Virtually every cell in a multicellular organism contains the same DNA genome yet each celltype looks and functions differently to perform its required role in the organism. It is the differences in the way each gene in the genome is expressed in each cell type that accounts for these dramatic differences in cellular functions. Even though there is a wide variety in appearance between vertebrates separated by millions of years of evolution, they are fundamentally made up of similar cell-types and organs. Brain, liver and heart from different vertebrate species share more common gene expression within the same organ than between different organs within the same species. This commonality indicates that the mechanisms that regulate gene expression in each tissue are highly conserved through evolution. We lack, however, an understanding of these mechanisms and are not able to pinpoint most of the regions of the genome that are not in genes, but that are responsible for this remarkable conservation.