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If you remember learning about chromosomes in biology classes, you probably imagine them as a narrow X shape, representing a pair of chromatids joined before cell division.
The only problem is that it’s not actually what the chromosomes look like.
According to a study published earlier this year, most of the time, the shape of a chromosome is actually much more complex. The study, led by a team of physicists from the Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, was able to produce a detailed 3D image of a chromosome, displaying them in a way never seen before.
Using a high-resolution 3D imaging system, the researchers merged multiple separate images of ‘genomic loci’ along DNA strands to form a single 3D image, showing a much more accurate representation of chromosomes than the classic X shape. that you learned in science class. After multiple attempts, they were able to capture around 2,000 loci per cell.
By creating this image, the researchers hope their work will help other researchers better understand and analyze these tiny molecules that make up our DNA.
Senior researcher Xiaowei Zhuang said:
It is very important to determine the 3D organization … to understand the molecular mechanisms underlying the organization and also to understand how this organization regulates the function of the genome.
The study says that 3D imaging can also show a small glimpse of transcription activity – the first stage of DNA replication – in chromosomes.
The team plans to share their data online so other researchers can work to better understand not just the structure of chromosomes, but their function in our DNA.
Who knows what other things we think we know about ourselves might turn out to be wrong.
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