Dr. Cullen Roth of Los Alamos National Laboratory delivered a powerful Tech Talk on groundbreaking research that redefines how scientists understand the human genome — not as a simple linear sequence, but as a dynamic, three-dimensional structure critical to cellular function. This work has wide-reaching implications, from enhancing diagnostics and therapies to advancing AI-driven biological models and improving agriculture.
Dr. Cullen Roth, Genomics and Bioanalytics Scientist at Los Alamos National Laboratory, presented a compelling overview of transformative research redefining how scientists understand the human genome and its relevance to medicine, technology, and agriculture. Reflecting on the field’s evolution since the early days of his career, Dr. Roth described a dramatic departure from earlier models that viewed the genome as a simple linear sequence. Today, researchers understand it as a complex, three-dimensional structure, intricately looped and folded within the confines of the cell nucleus.
“We can measure the 3d space between chromosomes when cells become infected by common cold. Through that, we can figure out which chromosomes are lost and gained post infection.”
Dr. Cullen Roth
Genomics and Bioanalytics Scientist
Los Alamos National Laboratory
This structural complexity is foundational to how cells function. Although the human genome would measure approximately six feet long if fully unspooled, it fits within a nucleus smaller than two microns. Dr. Roth highlighted how this extraordinary level of compaction is achieved through an organized three-dimensional configuration that researchers at Los Alamos have worked to map. New technologies now allow scientists to sequence how DNA folds and interacts with itself in three-dimensional space, producing models that reflect the genome’s dynamic nature. “This genomic structure in three-dimensional space is what differentiates our different cells,” Dr. Roth explained. He noted that gene transcription often depends on regulatory elements coming into contact with genes at precisely the right moment — even when they are located on entirely different chromosomes. Understanding these interactions is crucial to decoding how the human body operates and how diseases originate and progress.
A specific application of this research involves studying how cells respond to viral infections. Dr. Roth discussed how scientists can now track the spatial relationships between chromosomes in lung cells infected by viruses such as the common cold. By measuring these three-dimensional changes, researchers can determine which chromosomes are gained or lost after infection. This ability to monitor chromosome behavior in real time is opening new pathways for exploring how cells adapt to disease and environmental stress.
The implications of this work extend far beyond diagnostics. At Los Alamos, researchers see immense potential in applying three-dimensional genome models to advance vaccine development, design targeted therapies, and develop artificial intelligence systems capable of interpreting cellular changes. These models are also shedding light on aging, cancer, developmental disorders, and agricultural challenges such as crop protection.
Through this innovative research, Los Alamos National Laboratory is helping to pioneer a new frontier in genomic science. Advanced modeling of the genome’s three-dimensional organization is positioned to drive major breakthroughs in medicine, biotechnology, and computational biology.
