Mechanism and functions of nascent chromatin assembly during DNA replication

At every cell cycle, chromatin must be accurately replicated to control development and tissue homeostasis. Chromatin is replicated simultaneously with DNA in S phase of the cell cycle. A key regulator of this process is Chromatin Assembly Factor-1 (CAF-1). How CAF-1 performs its function at replication forks and how this crosstalks to DNA replication and cell cycle progression remains unclear. Here, we use biochemical reconstitutions, genomics and cell biology to investigate the mechanism of CAF-1 in S phase of the cell cycle, and the consequences for epigenome stability and cell survival.