Theoretical studies of gene expression kinetics

在一个典型的基因表达周期中，分子信号进入细胞核，它们与转录因子和DNA相互作用，一个或多个基因被转录成RNA，转录物被编辑，然后被输出到细胞质，在那里被翻译成蛋白质。由于扩散搜索和反应事件的内在随机性，每个步骤所需的时间是一个随机变量。我的研究项目旨在从机制上理解这些随机事件，以及它们对细胞功能和生物工程的影响。用非常粗略的术语来说，我们试图将这些复杂的随机（随机）过程简化为它们的组成部分，理解这些部分，然后将它们重新整合，以便对整个事件链的统计数据有所了解。

In a typical gene expression cycle, molecular signals enter the nucleus, they interact with the transcription factors and with the DNA, one or more genes are transcribed to RNA, the transcript is edited, and then it is exported to the cytoplasm where it is translated to protein. The time required for each of these steps is a random variable due to the intrinsic randomness of diffusive search and of reactive events. My research program seeks to understand these random events mechanistically, as well as their consequences for cellular function and for bioengineering. In very rough terms, we seek to reduce these complex stochastic (random) processes to their constituent parts, to understand the parts, and then to reintegrate them in order to say something about the statistics of the whole chain of events.