Topological constraints in eukaryotic genomes and how they can be exploited to improve spatial models of chromosomes

TL;DR

This paper discusses how topological constraints in eukaryotic genomes affect chromosome dynamics and how incorporating these effects into physical models can improve the accuracy of spatial genome reconstructions.

Contribution

It highlights the importance of topological constraints in chromosome modeling and proposes their inclusion to enhance spatial genome reconstruction methods.

Findings

Topological constraints significantly slow chromosome relaxation dynamics.

Inclusion of topological effects improves spatial genome models.

Chromosomes may never reach equilibrium within a cell's lifetime.

Abstract

Several orders of magnitude typically separate the contour length of eukaryotic chromosomes and the size of the nucleus where they are confined. The ensuing topological constraints can slow down the relaxation dynamics of genomic filaments to the point that mammalian chromosomes are never in equilibrium over a cell's lifetime. In this opinion article, we revisit these out-of-equilibrium effects and discuss how their inclusion in physical models can enhance the spatial reconstructions of interphase eukaryotic genomes from phenomenological constraints collected during interphase.