A “territory” is a distinct region in the nucleus in which folded chromosomes of differentiated cells occupy [1]. Within a territory, loci that are transcriptionally active tend to be located between territories, near the middle of the nucleus, while transcriptionally repressed loci are associated with the perimeter [1]. Interestingly, genes are also able to localize at the interior upon activation, with evidence that co-regulated genes are able to co-localize in what is referred to as “gene kissing” [1]. The localization of genes arises from the Brownian motion/constrained diffusion and directed movement of chromosomes [1]. It is important to note that the fractal and dynamic loop models reiterate the importance of loop formation in nuclear organization, including compaction, territory establishment, and transcriptional regulation [1]. Another important factor affecting gene regulation is the …show more content…
More specifically, they wanted to observe these features in both stem cells and MCF-7 breast cancer cells using a label-free method known as Raman microspectroscopy (RMS) [2]. As discussed, gene expression is directly impacted by the spatial organization of the nucleus [1]. RMS, then, may be useful in future studies that aim to observe things such as nucleic acid and protein density/distribution within the nucleolus and potentially answer challenging questions regarding the mechanisms behind spatial