在高等生物个体的发育和分化过程中，细胞命运的决定主要是通过表观遗传机制有选择地进行基因沉默或激活来实现的，而表观遗传调控主要是通过调控染色质高级结构的动态变化来实现的。核小体是真核生物染色质的基本结构单元，是构成染色质初级结构乃至高级结构的基石，它的组装、修饰和识别是染色质高级结构形成、维持及动态变化的基础。核小体组装、修饰和识别的结构机理研究对我们理解染色质高级结构的形成和维持、高等生物细胞分化这一重要及复杂的进程具有重要的意义。我们的研究主要围绕核小体组装、修饰和识别过程中核小体与蛋白质的相互作用开展：通过结构生物学手段，研究它们相互作用的结构基础和分子机理，分析它们在染色质高级结构形成与维持中发挥的重要作用。

During development and cellular differentiation of higher eukaryote, cell fate determination is mainly governed by epigenetic regulation of gene expression, which is mainly achieved by dynamic regulation of higher-order chromatin structure. Nucleosome is the basic unit of eukaryotic chromatin. The formation and dynamics of higher-order chromatin structure is coupled to the assembly and modification of nucleosomes. In this project, we will study the structural mechanisms of nucleosome-protein interactions in the assembly, modification and recogniton of nucleosome, as well as the functional significants of these nucleosome-protein interactions in the regulation of higher-order chromatin structure.