Epigenomics Research Group
About the Research Group
The Epigenomics Research Group (ERG) brings together core facility professionals, researchers, and technology experts working with epigenomic methods to advance best practices, develop community resources, and improve reproducibility across the field.
Epigenomics integrates molecular biology, protein biochemistry, DNA sequencing, and bioinformatics to study genome-wide regulation, including DNA methylation, chromatin accessibility, histone modifications, transcription factor binding, and three-dimensional chromatin organization. The ERG serves as a collaborative forum for discussing emerging technologies, evaluating methodologies, and developing practical guidance for shared resource laboratories.
Mission
The mission of the Epigenomics Research Group (ERG) is to promote communication and exchange of technical and scientific knowledge among core facilities using epigenomics-related methods; conduct studies and disseminate findings relevant to epigenomic assays, including optimizing and utilizing state-of-the-art technologies; and develop guidelines and recommendations for core facilities providing epigenomic services.
Research Interests
The ERG is focused on addressing questions that impact laboratories performing epigenomic assays, including:
- Choosing the appropriate assay for protein-DNA interactions (CUT&RUN, CUT&Tag, ChIP-seq, ChIP-exo/seq)
- Evaluating antibodies for epigenomic applications
- Developing recommendations for controls and normalization strategies
- Identifying best practices for sample preparation
- Comparing and validating bioinformatics analysis pipelines
- Establishing standardized workflows and community best practices
- Promoting reproducibility and quality assurance across epigenomics technologies
Current Activities
The group was formed following successful epigenomics discussions at the 2025 and 2026 ABRF Annual Meetings. Current activities include:
- Building an international community of epigenomics core professionals
- Hosting regular virtual meetings
- Maintaining a Slack community for technical discussions
- Identifying collaborative benchmarking and best-practice studies
- Working with other ABRF Research Groups where technologies overlap
- Marie Adams, Van Andel Institute
- Katelyn Becker, Van Andel Institute
- Nick Carruthers, U. Michigan Medical School
- Raymond Cavalcante, U. Michigan Medical School
- Nathan Dunton, University College London
- Lutz Froenicke, UC Davis
- Johan Gibcus, MIT
- Abhinav Jain, (Co-Chair), UT MD Anderson Cancer Center
- Megan Justice, (Co-Chair), Oklahoma State University
- Daniel Kraushaar, Baylor College of Medicine
- Claudia Lalancette, U. Michigan Medical School
- Amy Lyndaker, Cornell University
- Anoja Perera, Stowers Institute for Medical Research
- Kieu Pham, Baylor College of Medicine
- Allen Potter, Dana Farber Cancer Institute
- Steve Richards, Massachusetts General Hospital
- Jane Srivastava, (Executive Board liaison), Gladstone Institutes, UCSF
- Derek Warner, University of Utah
- Sion Williams, U. Miami Miller School of Medicine
- Alex Zevin, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center
Coming Soon
Coming Soon