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Insulators as mediators of intra- and inter-chromosomal interactions: a common evolutionary theme

Chin-Tong Ong and Victor G Corces*

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Department of Biology, Emory University, 1510 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA

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Citation and License

Journal of Biology 2009, 8:73 doi:10.1186/jbiol165

Published: 27 August 2009

Abstract

Insulator elements mediate intra- and inter-chromosomal interactions. The insulator protein CCCTC-binding factor (CTCF) is important for insulator function in several animals but a report in BMC Molecular Biology shows that Caenorhabditis elegans, yeast and plants lack CTCF. Alternative proteins may have a similar function in these organisms.