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Sampling the universe of gene expression

Nature Biotechnology volume 16, pages 1311–1312 (1998)Cite this article

The history of every cell is a saga of gene expression. During development, genes are switched on and off in a precisely choreographed sequence, so that each developmental stage is characterized by a unique pattern of expressed genes. In the adult organism, gene expression by mature cells is continuously modulated by local environmental cues. Pathological conditions and stressful or damaging stimuli elicit their own programs of acute or chronic gene expression.

Now that a comprehensive tally of all expressed genes in humans has become a realizable goal1, a major challenge for biology in the postgenomic era is to understand how changes in gene expression might regulate or correlate with cell development and cellular responses in both normal and pathological situations. An important first step in this process is to tabulate such changes in a variety of tissues and cell types, using methods that ideally will sample the entire universe of potentially expressible genes. The paper by Whitney et al. in this issue2 describes a versatile and powerful method with which to approach this goal. The method, which uses an innovative combination of gene trapping methodology and flow cytometric techniques, can potentially be used to isolate clonal cell lines and, subsequently, genes responsive to specific stimuli from a wide range of cells and tissues.

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Figure 1: Strategy for isolating responsive T-cell reporter tagged clones.

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  1. professor of pathology at the Center for Blood Research and the Department of Pathology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, 02115, MA

    Anjana Rao

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  1. Anjana Rao
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Rao, A. Sampling the universe of gene expression. Nat Biotechnol 16, 1311–1312 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1038/4272

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