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Regulation and function of bidirectional eRNA transcripts

I have a joint appointment (an ajointment if you will) in the DnA lab (Dowell and Allen) in MCDB and the Taatjes lab in Biochemistry. I am working on two projects aiming to answer the same broad question: what rules govern transcription of non-coding genomic elements, like enhancers. My ajointment positions me to tackle this question from two distinct angles. In the DnA Lab I employ machine learning to predict p53 responsive enhancers in a given cell type or stimulus. In the Taatjes lab, I am leveraging biochemical reconstitution with cell-based transcriptomics to determine the set of factors required to produce enhancer RNAs. In this way I will determine the factors required for enhancer transcription in different biologically relevant contexts.