Project Summary: The overall goals of the MIRA are to define how domains of coordinate gene activation are defined using Drosophila as a model system. We have identified an essential transcription factor which is key to this process (CLAMP) and undergraduate student Annie Huang will perform key experiments defining the genomic localization and function of truncation mutants in the clamp gene. Annie will use microscopy to localize the mutants on polytene chromosomes using available reagents and protocols and mRNA-seq to define their function. Annie will have the opportunity and learn RNA-seq analysis using a new pipeline which my lab recently developed called X vs. Y. Annie has not had many wet bench opportunities due to Covid and has been taking computational courses online to prepare for her summer research. Annie will make an important contribution to our understanding of the coordinate regulation of gene activation which is a central goal of the current award.