RNA

Global livestock contributes 14.5% of all manmade greenhouse gas emissions. Our food systems need a significant revamp, not to say a revolution, if we are to have any chance of feeding a growing population while also making sure there is still a planet that is worth populating at all.  Some of that revamping is happening in the lab, with cell biology taking centre stage. With global meat consumption showing no sign of slowing down (in fact, quite the opposite), cellular agriculture could be…

A gene called MYC is implicated in the majority of cancers, but unfortunately it’s often considered “undruggable.” In a new study scientists have developed a molecule that chops up the RNA of this gene, effectively clearing cancer in mice.The MYC gene plays a key role in regulating cell proliferation, metabolism and controlled cell death, but it’s not always helpful. In fact, it’s been implicated in as many as 70% of all human cancers, covering a wide range of types of the disease, and overexpression is associated with…

A sample extracted from an asteroid far from Earth has confirmed that RNA nucleobases can be found in space rocks.Analysis of dust ferried home from asteroid Ryugu has been found to contain uracil – one of the four nucleobases that make up RNA – in addition to niacin, a form of the vitamin B3, which plays an important role in metabolism.This adds to a growing body of evidence that the building blocks for life form in space, and may have been at least partially delivered to Earth by asteroid bombardment early in our…

A conceptual image for sampling materials on the asteroid Ryugu containing uracil and niacin by the Hayabusa2 spacecraft. Credit: NASA Goddard/JAXA/Dan GallagherSamples from the asteroid Ryugu collected by the Hayabusa2 mission contain nitrogenous organic compounds, including the nucleobase uracil, which is a part of <span class="glossaryLink" aria-describedby="tt" data-cmtooltip="<div class=glossaryItemTitle>RNA</div><div class=glossaryItemBody>Ribonucleic acid (RNA) is a…

A study published in PLOS Biology suggests that reducing methylation of a messenger RNA can help in the migration of macrophages to the brain and alleviate Alzheimer’s disease symptoms in a mouse model. This study highlights a potential pathway for immune cells to enter the brain and could provide a new target for Alzheimer’s treatment.Complex path promotes immune cell migration and clearance of toxic protein.Reducing the methylation of a key messenger <span class="glossaryLink"…

Structure of a coronavirus. Credit: WikimediaA new study describes how the functioning of <span class="glossaryLink" aria-describedby="tt" data-cmtooltip="<div class=glossaryItemTitle>RNA</div><div class=glossaryItemBody>Ribonucleic acid (RNA) is a polymeric molecule similar to DNA that is essential in various biological roles in coding, decoding, regulation and expression of genes. Both are nucleic acids, but unlike DNA, RNA is single-stranded. An RNA strand has a backbone…

Rodents to the rescue; Based on a study conducted by researchers from the US and Canada on mice and ferrets, they have created a vaccine made of mRNA lipid…

Tagging and illuminating only the inhibitory “brake” cells (green) in human brain tissue is just one of many things the new tool from Duke University, CellREADR, can do. Credit: Derek Southwell, Duke UniversityEditing technology is precise and broadly applicable to all tissues and species.Scientists at Duke University have developed an <span class="glossaryLink" aria-describedby="tt" data-cmtooltip="<div class=glossaryItemTitle>RNA</div><div class=glossaryItemBody>Ribonucleic…

Combining wastewater RNA level with overall pandemic time yields very high predictions of COVID-19 disease outcomesImage by Gerd Altmann from PixabayIn a previous article, I showed that the Biobot dataset of SARS-CoV-2 wastewater levels provides strong predictions of COVID-19 disease outcomes in the United States. But there are likely more factors in predicting hospitalization and death than just RNA markers in sewage. Some obvious candidates are vaccination, previous infection, and advances in medical treatment.I tested…

Researchers have spotted traces of an organic class of molecules that are a precursor to molecules essential for life. Located in the centre of the Milky Way, these building blocks that combine to form ribonucleic acid (RNA) could help scientists understand how life emerges in the universe. It is believed that originally life was based on only RNA on Earth while deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and protein enzymes evolved later. RNA can perform the functions of both DNA and enzymes by storing and copying information and…