Penn Biologists Identify Patterns of RNA Regulation in the Nuclei of Plants

In a new study, University of Pennsylvania biologists built on earlier work in which they cataloged all the interactions that occur between RNA and the proteins that bind to it. This time, they looked exclusively at these interactions in the nuclei, and simultaneously obtained data about the nuclear RNA molecules’ structure. By combining these datasets, their findings give a global view of the patterns that can affect the various RNA regulatory processes that occur before these molecules move into the cytoplasm, where they are translated into the proteins that make up a living organism.

In addition, the researchers have provided a vast, publicly available set of data that other scientists can use to address questions about any genes and regulatory mechanisms that interest them, gaining a better understanding of the dynamics of the journey from DNA to protein.

Brian D. Gregory, an assistant professor in Penn Arts and Sciences’ Department of Biology, was senior author on the work, which will appear in the journal Molecular Cell. Sager J. Gosai, a research specialist, and Shawn W. Foley, a graduate student, both members of Gregory’s lab, were co-first authors.

“Now that we’ve found beautiful patterns that mark alternative splicing and other events that shape the protein-coding capacity of plants, we’re going to go in and identify the proteins that lead to those,” Gregory said. “And eventually we’d like to go into humans and other organisms and ask if we see similar patterns.”

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