Much has been learned since the early 1960s about histone post-translational modifications (PTMs) and how they affect DNA-templated processes at the molecular level. This understanding has been bolstered in the past decade by the identification of new types of histone PTM, the advent of new genome-wide mapping approaches and methods to deposit or remove PTMs in a locally and temporally controlled manner. Now, with the availability of vast amounts of data across various biological systems, the functional role of PTMs in important processes (such as transcription, recombination, replication, DNA repair and the modulation of genomic architecture) is slowly emerging. This Review explores the contribution of histone PTMs to the regulation of genome function by discussing when these modifications play a causative (or instructive) role in DNA-templated processes and when they are deposited as a consequence of such processes, to reinforce and record the event. Important advances in the field showing that histone PTMs can exert both direct and indirect effects on genome function are also presented.

自 20 世纪 60 年代初以来，人们对组蛋白翻译后修饰 (PTM) 及其如何在分子水平上影响 DNA 模板化过程有了很多了解。在过去的十年中，新型组蛋白 PTM 的鉴定、新的全基因组作图方法的出现以及以局部和时间控制的方式沉积或去除 PTM 的方法增强了这种理解。现在，随着各种生物系统中大量数据的出现，PTM 在重要过程（如转录、重组、复制、DNA 修复和基因组结构调节）中的功能作用正在慢慢显现。本综述探讨了组蛋白 PTM 对基因组功能调节的贡献，讨论了这些修饰何时在 DNA 模板化过程中发挥因果（或指导性）作用，以及何时它们作为此类过程的结果而被沉积，以强化和记录该事件。还介绍了该领域的重要进展，表明组蛋白 PTM 可以对基因组功能产生直接和间接影响。