Epigenetic regulation of face formation
Each face is unique, even though the genes controlling facial shape are almost identical in every individual. Filippo Rijli and his team at the Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research (FMI) have discovered an epigenetic mechanism that regulates face morphogenesis. During early development, the neural crest cells that give rise to the various facial structures maintain chromatin plasticity, with all the genes involved remaining poised to respond to local cues. Once the cells are exposed to these environmental signals, a switch from a poised to an active chromatin state occurs, inducing position specific transcriptional programs that give rise to the chin, cheekbones or forehead.
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2017-03-epigenetic-formation.html#jCp
Each face is unique, even though the genes controlling facial shape are almost identical in every individual. Filippo Rijli and his team at the Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research (FMI) have discovered an epigenetic mechanism that regulates face morphogenesis. During early development, the neural crest cells that give rise to the various facial structures maintain chromatin plasticity, with all the genes involved remaining poised to respond to local cues. Once the cells are exposed to these environmental signals, a switch from a poised to an active chromatin state occurs, inducing position specific transcriptional programs that give rise to the chin, cheekbones or forehead.
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2017-03-epigenetic-formation.html#jCp
