Dr. Kuljeet Sandhu
Associate Professor , Biological Sciences

We are keen to address the fundamental questions pertaining to genome organization and regulation using systems approach. The boom in the whole genome studies has created a wealth of data, which allows us to test our hypotheses using computational methods and follow up with appropriate experiments.In particular, we are interested in following questions:

Why does the eukaryotic genome fold in a particular conformation, but not the other? What are the underlying evolutionary constraints? The present understating on this is too abstract.
How does the chromatin mobility associate with the regulation of essential genomic functions like transcription, replication and DNA repair? Some of our recent analyses contradict the presumption that loci with higher transcription have greater mobility.
How does the foreign DNA impact the 3D genome organization of the host cell? Does the viral DNA have preferred 3D interactions with host genome?
How is the intrinsic noise regulated in the cells? Does it associate with higher order chromatin states? Does it have any role in cell fate decision during lineage specification? Does it contribute to persistence of persister cells and can it be modulated synthetically?

• Sandhu KS*, Guoliang Li1, Huay Mei Poh1, Yu Ling Kelly Quek1, Yee Yen Sia1, Su Qin Peh1, Fabianus Hendriyan Mulawadi1, Mile Sikic2, Francesca Menghi1, Anbupalam Thalamuthu1, Wing Kin Sung1, Xiaoan Ruan1, Melissa Jane Fullwood1,3, Edison Liu1,4, Peter Csermely5, Yijun Ruan1* Large scale functional organization of long-range chromatin interaction networks Cell reports (in press, *corresponding author).
  
• Li G#, Ruan X#, Auerbach RK#, Sandhu KS#, Zheng M, Wang P, Poh HM, Goh Y, Lim J, Zhang J, Sim HS, Peh SQ, Mulawadi FH, Ong CT, Orlov YL, Hong S, Zhang Z, Landt S, Raha D, Euskirchen G, Wei CL, Ge W, Wang H, Davis C, Fisher-Aylor KI, Mortazavi A, Gerstein M, Gingeras T, Wold B, Sun Y, Fullwood MJ, Cheung E, Liu E, Sung WK, Snyder M*, Ruan Y*. Extensive promoter centered chromatin interactions provide the architectural basis for transcription regulation in eukaryotes.Cell. 2012 Jan 20;148(1-2):84-98 (#joint first author)
  
• Sandhu KS*. Did the modulation of expression noise shape the evolution of three dimensional genome organizations? Nucleus. 2012; 3:3, 1-4 (*corresponding author)
  
• Sandhu KS, Shi C, Sjolinder M, Zhao Z, Gondor A, Liu L, Tiwari VK, Guibert S, Emilsson L, Imreh MP, Ohlsson R*. Nonallelic transvection of multiple imprinted loci is organized by the H19 imprinting control region during germline development. Genes Dev. 2009; Nov 15; 23: 2592-2597.
  
• Zhao Z, Tavoosidana G, Sjolinder M, Gondor A, Mariano P, Wang S, Kanduri C, Lezcano M, Sandhu KS, Singh U, Pant V, Tiwari V, Kurukuti S, Ohlsson R*. Circular chromosome conformation capture (4C) uncovers extensive networks of epigenetically regulated intra- and interchromosomal interactions. Nat Genet. 2006 Nov;38(11):1341-7.
  
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