Chromatin organization in the mammalian nucleus.

Mammalian cells package their DNA into chromatin and arrange it in the nucleus as chromosomes. In interphase cells chromosomes are organized in a radial distribution with the most gene-dense chromosomes toward the center of the nucleus. Gene transcription, replication, and repair are influenced by the underlying chromatin architecture, which in turn is affected by the formation of chromosome territories. This arrangement in the nucleus presumably facilitates cellular functions to occur in an efficient and ordered fashion and exploring the link between transcription and nuclear organization will be an exciting area of further research.