Protein-DNA interactions lie at the heart of a functional cell. They are crucial for generating the next copy of the DNA, for keeping our genetic information intact, and for producing the complete reservoir of proteins needed for cell viability. To understand the elementary processes that govern the fate of living cells and give rise to diseases when going wrong, we must first understand protein-DNA interactions.
The Afek laboratory overarching goal is to obtain a deep molecular understanding of protein-DNA interactions involved in processes that are fundamental to physiology, disease, and evolution. We are developing cutting-edge approaches to manipulate DNA molecules in high throughput by introducing chemical and mechanical DNA perturbations that frequently occur in the human genome; and we use it to bridge the gap between test tubes and living cells. We use multidisciplinary approaches that closely integrate novel experimental and computational methods. We believe scientific boundaries are made to be broken, and we do our best to shatter them and to stretch the limit of our understanding of the cornerstone biochemical processes that govern life.
