Nuclear Pore Complexes in Genome Organization, Function and Maintenance

The three-dimensional organization of the DNA inside the eukaryotic cell nucleus has emerged a critical regulator of genome integrity and function. Increasing evidence indicates that nuclear pore complexes (NPCs), the large protein channels that connect the nucleus to the cytoplasm, play a critical role in the establishment and maintenance of chromatin organization and in the regulation of gene activity. These findings, which oppose the traditional view of NPCs as channels with only one: the facilitation of nucleocytoplasmic molecule exchange, have completely transformed our understanding of these structures. This book describes our current knowledge of the role of NPCs in genome organization and gene expression regulation. It starts by providing an overview of the different compartments and structures of the nucleus and how they contribute to organizing the genome, then moves to examine the direct roles of NPCs and their components in gene expression regulation in different organisms, and ends by describing the function of nuclear pores in the infection and genome integration of HIV, in DNA repair and telomere maintenance, and in the regulation of chromosome segregation and mitosis. This book provides an intellectual backdrop for anyone interested in understanding how the gatekeepers of the nucleus contribute to safeguarding the integrity and function of the eukaryotic genome. 



Maximiliano D'Angelo, Ph.D., is Faculty of the Development, Aging and Regeneration Program and the Immunity and Pathogenesis Program at the Sanford Burnham Medical Discovery Institute in La Jolla, California. He is also member of the Tumor Initiation and Maintenance Program of the NCI-designated Cancer Center. Before moving to SBP, Dr. D'Angelo was a Principal investigator of the Cardiovascular Research Institute at the University of California San Francisco and Assistant Professor of the Department of Biochemistry & Biophysics. Dr. D'Angelo received his Ph.D. in molecular biology from the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina, and trained at The Scripps Research Institute and the Salk Institute for Biological before beginning his independent career. He has been Fellow of the Ellison Foundation and American Federation for Aging Research, Pew Latin American Fellow, Pew Biomedical Scholar and Scholar of the American Cancer Society.