A research institute in Seoul says it has deciphered basic cell functions surrounding genetic data.

Institut Pasteur Korea on Monday said it used advanced imaging tools and cutting edge microscopes to observe genes in living cells during the genetic activation process.

The findings are in the latest issue of the scientific journal Nature.

The research showed that once genes grew active, they had a marked decrease in their movement. The discovery is also seen as the first confirmation of the "gated" genes theory of Guenter Blobel, who won the Nobel Prize for medicine in 1999.

The institute said the discovery will allow carefully monitoring of the nuclear organizations of genes and the use of spatial and architectural data to determine the cause of many hereditary diseases, such as muscular dystrophy and Lou Gehrig's disease.