Min Gyu Lee
Professor
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
Department of Molecular and Cellular Oncology
The research in my laboratory is to understand the roles of histone modifications and their modifiers in cancer and stem cells. Histones undergo many posttranslational modifications, including methylation and acetylation. Histone modifications play an essential role in regulating gene expression and chromatin architecture, consequently affecting numerous biological processes such as cellular differentiation, development, and oncogenic events. In particular, histone methylation is a hallmark of epigenetic and transcriptional regulation of gene expression and is controlled by its modifiers, such as histone methyltransferases and demethylases. We focus on defining the cellular and biological roles of histone methylation modifiers in two major epigenetic events: 1) tumor formation and metastasis; and 2) the maintenance and differentiation of stem cells.
A tutorial experience in my laboratory would provide an opportunity to learn histone modifications and their modifiers, epigenetic and transcriptional regulation of genes, and chromatin function. We use an array of biochemical, molecular biological and biological approaches, including DNA cloning, protein expression in bacteria and mammalian cells, various biochemical assays, mammalian cell culture, proteomic approaches, CRISPR approaches, chromatin immunoprecipitation, quantitative real-time PCR assays, xenograft mouse models, and various genetically engineered mouse models.
Education & Training
Ph.D. - Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine - 2004