Perinuclear chromatin anchoring in Caenorhabditis elegans embryos : CEC-4 characterization and function

This thesis consists of four chapters.
Chapter 1 is an introduction based in reviews from the Gasser lab, to which I have contributed. The main message of each review is kept but they are arranged or modified in a way to avoid redundancy and provide clarity. Additional relevant literature that is not discussed adequately in either of the reviews has been included. The chapter gives an updated overview of the field of spatial organization of chromatin in the interphase nucleus.
Chapter 2 presents the work published in Cell, 2015. It is an experimental chapter in which I present the identification, characterization and function of a novel C. elegans chromodomain protein called CEC-4 (Caenorhabditis elegans chromodomain protein 4), which mediates the anchoring of chromatin at the nuclear periphery in C. elegans embryos. Experiments were primarily performed by myself, but I indicate where others have carried our experimental work for this publication.
Chapter 3 presents unpublished data that further characterizes CEC-4.
Finally, Chapter 4 places the work presented in the thesis in the context of spatial chromatin organization and provides a future outlook based on this study.