# Predictable control of gene regulation through epigenetic engineering

> **NIH NIH R21** · EMORY UNIVERSITY · 2020 · $196,085

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ ABSTRACT
Recent landmark discoveries have revealed that in addition to DNA lesions, epigenetic mechanisms also play a
major role in cancer. Epigenetics is mediated in part by interactions of proteins and DNA that confer heritable
gene expression states. Drugging the cancer epigenome is a burgeoning medical technology that currently uses
small molecule inhibitors and small RNAs to disrupt hyperactive epigenetic enzymes. The proposed work will
test the hypothesis that a new modality, fusion proteins that interact with the chromatin fiber, will activate
therapeutic genes at sites that bear a specific pattern of cancer-related biochemical marks. The specific aims
are to (2) use bioinformatic analyses to discover chromosome features that support inducible changes in gene
expression states and (2) to use protein engineering to identify determinants of nuclear protein engagement.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10021602
- **Project number:** 5R21CA232244-02
- **Recipient organization:** EMORY UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Karmella Ann Haynes
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $196,085
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-09-19 → 2022-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10021602

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10021602, Predictable control of gene regulation through epigenetic engineering (5R21CA232244-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-02 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10021602. Licensed CC0.

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