Splicing News and Research

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Could CRISPR be used as a SARS-CoV-2 antiviral?

The potential of using this gene manipulation technology as a SARS-CoV-2 inhibitor or prophylactic is investigated in a review recently uploaded to the journal Experimental Biology and Medicine (April 25th, 2021) by Arnab Banerjee and colleagues.

2 May 2021

Researchers identify potential therapeutic target to prevent neurodegeneration after a stroke

Researchers with the Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute at UT Southwestern have identified a new protein implicated in cell death that provides a potential therapeutic target that could prevent or delay the progress of neurodegenerative diseases following a stroke.

27 Apr 2021

RNA secondary structures can contribute strongly to gene regulation, research shows

A team of scientists from Russia studied the role of double-stranded fragments of the maturing RNA and showed that the interaction between distant parts of the RNA can regulate gene expression. The research was published in Nature Communications.

22 Apr 2021

Novel CRISPR-based technology may lead to powerful epigenetic therapies

Scientists have figured out how to modify CRISPR's basic architecture to extend its reach beyond the genome and into what's known as the epigenome -- proteins and small molecules that latch onto DNA and control when and where genes are switched on or off.

17 Apr 2021

Study sheds light on how tau aggregates promote Alzheimer’s disease

Look deep inside the brain of someone with Alzheimer's disease, most forms of dementia or the concussion-related syndrome known as chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) and you'll find a common suspected culprit: stringy, hairball-like tangles of a protein called tau.

17 Apr 2021

Cell receptor neuropilin-1 offers a promising anti-tumor strategy

Cancer is an insidious disease that, despite being around for centuries, is still very difficult to diagnose and treat. Thus, cancer has been the focus much research in the biomedical fields.

16 Apr 2021

Researchers examine circRNAs encoded by MERS-CoV, SARS-CoV-1 and SARS-CoV-2

New research published in Briefings in Bioinformaticsm has identified thousands of circRNAs in Betacoronaviruses, including MERS-CoV, SARS-CoV-1, and SARS-CoV-2, from the RNA-sequencing data of viral infections. These coronaviruses have a similar genomic structure with a diverse circRNA coding ability. Researchers have also systematically characterized circRNAs in coronaviruses, with regard to their size, sequence feature, expressions, genome, location preference, and functions. This opens the door to further explore and understand the mode of action of individual circRNAs in coronaviruses.

29 Mar 2021

Researchers examine SARS-CoV-2 RNA interactome

A new study focuses on the identification of RNA-binding protein by mass spectrometry (ChIRP-M/S) approach. This study develops a global map that contains the complete set of host proteins that involve the SARS-CoV-2 genome during infection. This study has successfully identified new SARS-CoV-2 host dependency factors by merging proteomics data with gene silencing experiments. Such a discovery has paved new roads to develop more antiviral therapies.

25 Mar 2021

Researchers identify the trigger of key cellular change in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Scientists at the Francis Crick Institute and UCL have identified the trigger of a key cellular change in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a type of motor neurons disease.

4 Mar 2021

Study demonstrates intricate relationship between Prpf19 and Exoc7 in inherited ataxias

Spinocerebellar ataxia type 3 (SCA3), also known as Machado-Joseph Disease (MJD), describes the most common form of dominantly inherited ataxia in many populations worldwide, including Hong Kong and mainland China.

1 Mar 2021

Deep learning-based splice-AI can help predict the onset of Alzheimer's disease

Korea Brain Research Institute (KBRI, President Suh Pann-ghill) announced that the research team led by Dr. Jae-Yeol Joo discovered new cryptic splice variants and SNVs in PLCg1 gene of AD-specific models for the first time using Splice-AI.

1 Mar 2021

Diverse patient population helps identify gene variant associated with childhood asthma

Researchers at Henry Ford Health System, as part of a national asthma collaborative, have identified a gene variant associated with childhood asthma that underscores the importance of including diverse patient populations in research studies.

27 Feb 2021

No evidence of SARS-CoV-2 fusing into the human genome

New data from researchers led by Majid Kazemian from Purdue University refutes claims from recent studies suggesting the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) could create a host-virus chimeric RNA. Their team found SARS-CoV-2 does not combine with the human genome.

22 Feb 2021

Differences in gene readouts may shed light on mental disorders

A new study suggests that differences in the expression of gene transcripts - readouts copied from DNA that help maintain and build our cells - may hold the key to understanding how mental disorders with shared genetic risk factors result in different patterns of onset, symptoms, course of illness, and treatment responses

8 Feb 2021

Researchers update automated computation tool for SARS-CoV-2 genome analysis

Researchers updated a previous version of an automated tool to include SARS-CoV-2 genome analysis. Genome analysis using the freely available software could help track the evolution of the virus and promptly identify variants that increase viral transmission or virulence.

22 Jan 2021

Targeting RNA splicing can activate antiviral immune pathways in triple negative breast cancers

Researchers at Baylor College of Medicine have discovered how therapeutics targeting RNA splicing can activate antiviral immune pathways in triple negative breast cancers (TNBC) to trigger tumor cell death and signal the body's immune response.

15 Jan 2021

Research on genetic heart disease uncovers new mechanism for heart failure

Research on genetic heart disease has uncovered a new and unexpected mechanism for heart failure. This landmark discovery found a correlation between the clumping of RNA-binding proteins long linked to neurodegenerative disease and the aggregates of protein found in the heart tissue of patients with RBM20 dilated cardiomyopathy.

19 Nov 2020

New method using light-activated liposomes is safer, more direct to deliver CRISPR gene therapy

Light-activated liposomes could help to deliver CRISPR gene therapy - and the method could prove safer and more direct than current methods.

12 Nov 2020

Novel insights on a common protein could have broad biomedical applications

A new University of Colorado Boulder-led study sheds light on a protein key to controlling how cells grow, proliferate and function and long implicated in tumor development.

4 Nov 2020

Genetic analysis with RNA sequencing can increase diagnostic yield, shows study

In the world of rare genetic diseases, exome and genome sequencing are two powerful tools used to make a diagnosis. A recent addition to the toolkit, RNA sequencing, has been demonstrated to help researchers narrow down disease candidate variants identified first on exome and genome sequencing.

28 Oct 2020