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Updated: Apr 8, 2026

Mapping Absolute DNA Density in Cell Nuclei using Single-molecule Localization Microscopy
Published on: November 11, 2025
DNA O-MAP uncovers the molecular neighborhoods associated with specific genomic loci
Yuzhen Liu1,2, Christopher D McGann1, Conor P Herlihy1
1Department of Genome Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, United States.
Abstract:
The accuracy of crucial nuclear processes such as transcription, replication, and repair depends on the local composition of chromatin and the regulatory proteins that reside there. Understanding these DNA-protein interactions at the level of specific genomic loci has remained challenging due to technical limitations. Here, we introduce a method termed 'DNA O-MAP', which uses programmable peroxidase-conjugated oligonucleotide probes to biotinylate nearby proteins. We show that DNA O-MAP can be coupled with label-free or sample multiplexed quantitative proteomics, targeted chemical perturbations, and next-generation sequencing to quantify DNA-proximal proteins and DNA-DNA interactions at specific genomic loci in human and murine cells. Furthermore, we establish that DNA O-MAP is applicable to both repetitive and unique genomic loci of varying sizes, from kilobase HOX gene clusters to megabase alpha-satellite repeats, and that DNA O-MAP can measure proximal molecular effectors in a homolog-specific manner.
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