Research Expertise and Interest

genetics, epigenetics, CRISPR-based genome and epigenome editing

Research Description

James Nuñez is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Molecular & Cell Biology, a Hanna Gray Fellow of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and an Investigator of the Chan Zuckerberg Biohub.  The core interest of his research group is to understand the regulatory principles of the human genome. Specifically, the Nuñez lab investigates how 'epigenetic' chemical modifications can regulate which genes are turned on or off in human cells; how epigenetic modifications are altered during cell division and differentiation; and how defects in the 'epigenome' are associated with disease. The Nuñez lab combines genetics, functional genomics, CRISPR screens, cell biology, and biochemistry to answer their research questions. Concurrently, the Nuñez lab develops new technologies to edit epigenetic modifications in the human genome that enables programmable perturbation of gene expression without changing the human genome sequence.