In this episode of the Epigenetics Podcast, we talked with Maxim Greenberg from the Institute Jacob Monot about his work on epigenetic consequences of DNA methylation in development.

In this interview we explore how Dr. Greenberg’s work at UCLA involved pioneering experiments on DNA methylation mechanisms and how this period was marked by significant collaborative efforts within a highly competitive yet supportive lab environment that ultimately lead to publications in high impact journals.

His transition to a postdoctoral position at the Institut Curie with Deborah Bourc'his harnessed his expertise in mammalian systems, examining chromatin changes and the implications for embryonic development. Dr. Greenberg explained the nuances of his research, particularly how chromatin modifications during early development can influence gene regulatory mechanisms later in life, providing a compelling narrative about the potential long-term impacts of epigenetic changes that occur in utero.

Throughout our conversation, we examined the intricate relationship between DNA methylation and Polycomb repression, discussing how these epigenetic mechanisms interact and the functional outcomes of their regulation. Dr. Greenberg's insights into his recent studies reveal a commitment to unraveling the complexities of enhancer-promoter interactions in the context of epigenetic regulation.

Greenberg, M. V., Ausin, I., Chan, S. W., Cokus, S. J., Cuperus, J. T., Feng, S., Law, J. A., Chu, C., Pellegrini, M., Carrington, J. C., & Jacobsen, S. E. (2011). Identification of genes required for de novo DNA methylation in Arabidopsis. Epigenetics, 6(3), 344–354. https://doi.org/10.4161/epi.6.3.14242

Greenberg, M. V., Glaser, J., Borsos, M., Marjou, F. E., Walter, M., Teissandier, A., & Bourc'his, D. (2017). Transient transcription in the early embryo sets an epigenetic state that programs postnatal growth. Nature genetics, 49(1), 110–118. https://doi.org/10.1038/ng.3718

Greenberg, M., Teissandier, A., Walter, M., Noordermeer, D., & Bourc'his, D. (2019). Dynamic enhancer partitioning instructs activation of a growth-related gene during exit from naïve pluripotency. eLife, 8, e44057. https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.44057

Monteagudo-Sánchez, A., Richard Albert, J., Scarpa, M., Noordermeer, D., & Greenberg, M. V. C. (2024). The impact of the embryonic DNA methylation program on CTCF-mediated genome regulation. Nucleic acids research, 52(18), 10934–10950. https://doi.org/10.1093/nar/gkae724

Richard Albert, J., Urli, T., Monteagudo-Sánchez, A., Le Breton, A., Sultanova, A., David, A., Scarpa, M., Schulz, M., & Greenberg, M. V. C. (2024). DNA methylation shapes the Polycomb landscape during the exit from naive pluripotency. Nature structural & molecular biology, 10.1038/s41594-024-01405-4. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41594-024-01405-4

DNA Methylation and Mammalian Development (Déborah Bourc'his)

Circulating Epigenetic Biomarkers in Cancer (Charlotte Proudhon)

Epigenetic Mechanisms in Genome Regulation and Developmental Programming (James Hackett)

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