Researchers have discovered an enzyme that plays an important role in controlling which genes will be turned on or off at any given time in a cell. The novel protein helps orchestrate the patterns of gene activity that determine normal cell function. Their disruption can lead to cancer. The elusive enzyme, whose presence in cells was suspected but not proven for decades, came to light in the laboratory of Yang Shi, HMS professor of pathology, and is described in a study published in the Dec. 16 online edition of Cell and appearing in the Dec. 29 print edition.
