Peter Lewis
Credentials: PhD
Position title: Assistant Professor
Email: plewis@discovery.wisc.edu
Phone: (608) 316-4388
Address:
Wisconsin Institute for Discovery
330 N. Orchard Street, Room 2174
Madison, WI 53715
- Lab
- Lewis Lab
Focus Groups
Cancer Biology
Education
B.S., University of Virginia
Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley
Postdoctoral Fellowship, The Rockefeller University
Research Summary
Chromatin Dynamics in Development and Cancer
Research Detail
My research program is rooted in the idea that eukaryotic chromatin, the physiologically relevant form of genomes, contains an indexing system that represents a fundamental regulatory mechanism. Covalent modifications to both DNA and histone proteins allow chromatin to act as a dynamic information hub that integrates diverse biochemical stimuli to regulate genomic DNA access and ultimately establish and maintain cellular identity. Aberrant chromatin regulation, as a consequence of mutation or abnormal signaling is associated with many diseases, especially cancer. The identification of oncogenic mutations has led to the emerging view of “driver mutations” in chromatin regulators underlying many human cancers. My research is aimed at defining how changes in chromatin structure aids in the establishment and maintenance of gene expression programs involved in normal development and tumorigenesis. Ongoing research in the laboratory is directed at describing the molecular mechanisms by which histone H3 mutations drive tumorigenesis, and how the variant histone H3.3 functions in the maintenance of genome integrity in mammals.