Contextual inference of gene function


Sridhar Hannenhalli
Professor, University of Maryland
Visiting IISc as a Fulbright Scholar

Cellular functions are accomplished by network or interacting molecules and the function of a gene is informed by its network neighborhood – codified as guilt by association. This implies that the dynamic network context should result in dynamic change in a gene’s function. We will discuss two recent projects in the lab that exploit this principle to infer context-specific function, at two biological scales – that of cancer and evolution.