Fulai Jin

In the 3D space, mammalian genome is folded and packed in a highly organized fashion. Besides the well-known chromatin relaxation and compaction associated with "open" and "closed" chromatin, DNA also form long-range loops which allow contacts between various cis-regulatory elements, including promoters, enhancers, and insulators. Genome organization may play key roles in health and diseases. For example, mutations at enhancers may alter the expression levels of target genes from hundreds of kilobases away, leading to human diseases. We are interested in the global study of 3D genome architecture. We develop methods and technologies to enable robust and affordable high resolution 3D genome mapping with low-input and single cell samples. We also study the function of 3D genome in a variety development and disease models, including stem cell, cancer, diabetes, and neurological diseases. Besides 3D genome technologies, the Jin lab members will also be exposed to CRISPR tools, single cell technologies including scRNA-seq and snATAC-seq, as well as multi-OMIC data integration. Our research is supported by multiple grants from the National Institutes of Health.