Histones serve to both package and organize DNA within the nucleus. In addition to histone
post-translational modification and chromatin remodelling complexes, histone variants …

Embryogenesis depends on a highly coordinated cascade of genetically encoded events. In
animals, maternal factors contributed by the egg cytoplasm initially control development …

Despite a conserved role for histones as general DNA packaging agents, it is now clear that
another key function of these proteins is to confer variations in chromatin structure to ensure …

In the last decade, many papers highlighted that the histone variant H2AX and its
phosphorylation on Ser 139 (γH2AX) cannot be simply considered a specific DNA double …

An open chromatin architecture devoid of compact chromatin is thought to be associated
with pluripotency in embryonic stem cells. Establishing this distinct epigenetic state may also …

The chromatin template imposes an epigenetic barrier during the process of somatic cell
reprogramming. Using fibroblasts derived from macroH2A double knockout (dKO) mice …

The nucleus of eukaryotic cells is organized into functionally specialized compartments that
are essential for the control of gene expression, chromosome architecture and cellular …

In mouse, the oocyte-to-embryo transition entails converting a highly differentiated oocyte to
totipotent blastomeres. This transition is driven by degradation of maternal mRNAs, which …

BACKGROUND A limitation to our ability to distinguish between developmentally competent
and incompetent eggs is our still only partial knowledge of the critical features that are …

In preimplantation mouse development, the first cell lineages to be established are the
trophectoderm (TE) and inner cell mass. TE possesses epithelial features, including apical …