Genomic footprinting
Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 11, 2026

Spotting Cheetahs: Identifying Individuals by Their Footprints
Published on: May 1, 2016
Jeff Vierstra1,2, John A Stamatoyannopoulos1,2,3
1Department of Genome Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA.
Abstract:
The advent of DNA footprinting with DNase I more than 35 years ago enabled the systematic analysis of protein-DNA interactions, and the technique has been instrumental in the decoding of cis-regulatory elements and the identification and characterization of transcription factors and other DNA-binding proteins. The ability to analyze millions of individual genomic cleavage events via massively parallel sequencing has enabled in vivo DNase I footprinting on a genomic scale, offering the potential for global analysis of transcription factor occupancy in a single experiment. Genomic footprinting has opened unique vistas on the organization, function and evolution of regulatory DNA; however, the technology is still nascent. Here we discuss both prospects and challenges of genomic footprinting, as well as considerations for its application to complex genomes.
Related Concept Videos
Genomic DNA in Prokaryotes
Genomic Diversity in Bacteria
Although bacterial genomes are much...
Genomics
Genomic Imprinting and Inheritance
The expression of some genes depends on which parent passed the gene to the offspring, through a phenomenon known as...
Genome Size and the Evolution of New Genes
Genome Size and the Evolution of New Genes
Comparing Mitochondrial, Chloroplast, and Prokaryotic Genomes

