Investigation of the molecular mechanisms leading to genome-wide DNA demethylation. Role of Tet3 protein and 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) during epigenetic reprogramming in mouse zygotes. Technical expertise: - Designed and validated cellular assays to estimate the potency and the specificity of small molecule inhibitors (cofactor or nucleoside analogues) towards their specific targets. - Developed high level of expertise in handling complex cellular culture systems such as embryonic stem cells and in vitro fertilisation-derived embryos. - Designed CRISPR/Cas targeting vectors for the construction of knockout murine models. Method development, implementation and validation: - Developed and optimised a novel and highly sensitive LC/MS method to quantify DNA modifications that was adapted for minute samples. - Optimised fluorescence-based methods for the visualisation of nucleoside and metabolite analogues by confocal microscopy.
genome