Gary Churchill
Domains and Networks of Correlated Gene Expression
Transcriptional regulation of gene expression, its timing, tissue distribution and response to both internal and environmental inputs, is a key link between the genome and phenotype. Variation in expression patterns across cell types is a primary determinant of tissue identity and function. Individual genetic variation in gene expression determines both our susceptibility to disease and provides the substrate for evolutionary adaptation. An integrated view of genome dynamics requires understanding these relationships in terms of genome organization.
Towards this goal we are:
- Analyzing publicly available gene expression data resources for physical correlates of tissue-specific gene expression patterns and for clustering of co-expression in linkage disequilibrium domains and networks.
- Surveying gene expression in 16 mouse strains using microarrays. The selected strains include 'classical' inbred strains, inbred strains derived from M.m. musculus, M.m. domesticus, and M.m. castaneus origin, and inbred strains derived from hybrid origins. We will examine four tissues in mice of both sexes and relate our findings to genome organization and functional variation.
- Developing statistical methods and software for these analyses.
