Multi-Scale Chromatin Architecture: Bridging Genome Structure, Dynamics, and Function Across Domains of Life

Chromatin architecture underlies genome organization and function across all domains of life, from nucleosome-based chromatin in eukaryotes to protein-structured and supercoiled chromosomes in prokaryotes. Rather than serving as a static scaffold, chromatin is a dynamic and hierarchical system whose spatial organization is tightly coupled to transcription, replication, DNA repair, and chromosome segregation, and is continuously reshaped by mechanical forces, metabolic state, cell cycle progression, and environmental stresses. Recent advances in structural biology, cryo-electron microscopy and tomography, single-molecule and live-cell imaging, and sequencing-based technologies have enabled quantitative interrogation of genome folding across molecular, mesoscale, and whole-chromosome levels. These approaches have revealed conserved architectural principles—including compartmentalization, loop extrusion, domain formation, and topological regulation—while also uncovering extensive heterogeneity and plasticity across developmental stages and physiological contexts.This Research Topic aims to bring together experimental, theoretical, and computational advances addressing chromatin organization across scales—from molecular assemblies and local chromatin states to mesoscale folding and global chromosome architecture—in both eukaryotic and prokaryotic systems. It will highlight mechanistic insights, emerging conceptual frameworks, and integrative strategies that bridge structure and function.This Research Topic welcomes Original Research, Reviews, Perspectives, Opinion, and Methods articles addressing—but not limited to—the following areas:·Multi-scale chromatin organization from nucleosomes to whole chromosomes·Chromatin remodeling during the cell cycle and large-scale genome reorganization·Transcription–chromatin coupling, supercoiling, and topological regulation·Phase separation, chromatin mechanics, and stress-induced chromatin reorganization·In situ structural approaches (e.g., cryo-EM, cryo-ET) for studying genome architecture·Sequencing-informed genome folding models and integrative multi-modal analysis·Polymer, biophysical, and AI-assisted modelling of chromatin dynamics Topic editors: Kundan Sengupta, Meng Zhang Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/79746/multi-scale-chromatin-architecture-bridging-genome-structure-dynamics-and-function-across-domains-of-life