Applying long-read sequencing technology to understand telomere repair and DNA replication

Aims

To apply long-read sequencing technology for the analysis of telomeres and DNA replication. 

Brief project outline

Our project applies long-read DNA sequencing technology to understand repair pathways at telomeres and dissect the spatial and temporal regulation of DNA replication. By implementing long-read sequencing approaches in these research areas, we aim to advance our structural (telomeres) and functional (replication) understanding of the human genome.

Genomics-based innovative aspect of proposal 

Our project will use the existing Oxford Nanopore Sequencing capabilities at GIH and leverage them to address long standing biological questions regarding telomere repair and the regulation of DNA replication. New capabilities would include analyzing telomere length using long-read sequencing and calling modified bases. 

Broad applicability of the technique 

The aims under investigation in this project are broadly applicable to researchers across UQ and internationally. Briefly, telomere length has been widely interrogated for its association with health, stress and cancer. Establishing a long-read sequencing platform to measure telomere lengths and mutational signatures will have broad applicability to researchers studying cancer and age related disorders. Modified nucleotides are widely used in cancer treatment and diagnostic DNA probes. The ability to identify modified DNA nucleotides on ultra-long nanopore sequences will not only be widely adopted by researchers investigating the spatial and temporal regulation of DNA replication but may also prove useful in diagnostic applications that utilize probes containing modified nucleotides.