Grants per year
Personal profile
Research Interests
Our research program is focused on the important basic question of how chromosomes are segregated during cell division to ensure the complete and accurate inheritance of the genome. Chromosome instability is a hallmark of cancer and can drive tumorigenesis. Therefore, how centromere specification is controlled is a basic biological question with great therapeutic potential. Centromeres are specified by the incorporation of a histone variant CENP-A, and stable inheritance of this locus is controlled by an epigenetic pathway. We are using a combination of cell biology, biochemical purification, and in vitro reconstitution of centromeric chromatin to discover the mechanism of epigenetic inheritance and CENP-A function across the cell cycle. The immediate goal is to determine the mechanism of epigenetic centromere inheritance, with a long-term goal of delineating the role of this process in tumorigenesis, and translate our basic understanding of the enzymes and proteins involved in this process into therapeutic approaches for targeting proliferative disease.
Training Experience
2008 | Postdoctoral Fellowship, Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, San Diego, CA |
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
Education/Academic qualification
PhD, Northwestern University
… → 2001
Research interests
- Cancer Biology
- Cell Division
- Chromatin
- Chromosome Segregation
- Epigenetics
- Molecular Biology
- Nucleic Acid Structure/Function
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Network
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Histone chaperone networks for new and evicted histones
Foltz, D. R., Ben-Sahra, I. & Zou, L.
National Institute of General Medical Sciences
8/1/21 → 6/30/25
Project: Research project
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The role of nucleoli in human genome organization in normal and disease states
Foltz, D. R., Huang, S. & Mendillo, M. L.
University of Massachusetts Medical School, National Cancer Institute
9/1/20 → 2/28/27
Project: Research project
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Assembly and epigenetic inheritance of the human centromere
Foltz, D. R. & Zou, L.
National Institute of General Medical Sciences
8/1/19 → 7/31/23
Project: Research project
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UBR7 is a novel chromatin directed E3 ubiquitin ligase
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
9/1/15 → 8/31/17
Project: Research project
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CENP-A overexpression promotes aneuploidy with karyotypic heterogeneity
Shrestha, R. L., Rossi, A., Wangsa, D., Hogan, A. K., Zaldana, K. S., Suva, E., Chung, Y. J., Sanders, C. L., Difilippantonio, S., Karpova, T. S., Karim, B., Foltz, D. R., Fachinetti, D., Aplan, P. D., Ried, T. & Basrai, M. A., Feb 2021, In: Journal of Cell Biology. 220, 4, e202007195.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access6 Scopus citations -
NOTCH1-driven UBR7 stimulates nucleotide biosynthesis to promote T cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia
Srivastava, S., Sahu, U., Zhou, Y., Hogan, A. K., Sathyan, K. M., Bodner, J., Huang, J., Wong, K. A., Khalatyan, N., Savas, J. N., Ntziachristos, P., Ben-Sahra, I. & Foltz, D. R., Jan 27 2021, In: Science Advances. 7, 5, abc9781.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access3 Scopus citations -
Reduce, retain, recycle: Mechanisms for promoting histone protein degradation versus stability and retention
Hogan, A. K. & Foltz, D. R., May 2021, In: Molecular and cellular biology. 41, 6, e00007-21.Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article › peer-review
4 Scopus citations -
UBR7 acts as a histone chaperone for post-nucleosomal histone H3
Hogan, A. K., Sathyan, K. M., Willis, A. B., Khurana, S., Srivastava, S., Zasadzińska, E., Lee, A. S., Bailey, A. O., Gaynes, M. N., Huang, J., Bodner, J., Rosencrance, C. D., Wong, K. A., Morgan, M. A., Eagen, K. P., Shilatifard, A. & Foltz, D. R., Dec 15 2021, In: EMBO Journal. 40, 24, e108307.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Cell Biology: Hacking Alpha Satellites out of the HAC
Willis, A. B. & Foltz, D. R., Nov 18 2019, In: Current Biology. 29, 22, p. R1194-R1196Research output: Contribution to journal › Short survey › peer-review
1 Scopus citations