Robert-Jan Palstra

During my PhD I studied the spatial organisation of the β-globin locus using 3C technology and demonstrated that transcription factors can play an essential role in the 3D organisation of gene loci. These studies demonstrated how cis-regulatory elements communicate with genes. My current research interests include: 1-Fundamental mechanisms of enhancer action en chromatin loop formation. 2-The role of non-coding DNA variation in long-range gene activation in melanocyte biology and melanoma.