In biological systems, cells precisely regulate gene expression. Individuals inherit genes from both parents, but alleles from different parents often exhibit differences in expression levels or patterns, which is known as Allele-Specific Expression (ASE). ASE may arise from two main causes: first, DNA sequence differences between alleles can affect their ability to bind regulatory elements; second, parent-of-origin effects, for which gene expression depends on whether the allele was inherited from the father or the mother. Genomic imprinting is the most typical example of a parent-of-origin effect, where genes are "imprinted" to express only the paternal or maternal allele. This imbalance in allele expression, caused by sequence differences or parent-of-origin effects (particularly genomic imprinting), is crucial for mammalian processes such as embryonic development, placental formation, growth metabolism, and neurological function. Disruption of this finely tuned regulation, such as abnormal expression of imprinted genes, often leads to severe developmental issues or even embryonic lethality.
On June 2nd, 2025, our lab achieved a significant breakthrough in single-molecule sequencing and RNA epitranscriptomics with our findings, titled “Single-molecule direct RNA sequencing reveals the shaping of epitranscriptome across multiple species”, published in Nature Communications. In this study, we developed a high-precision single-molecule m6A detection tool, SingleMod, based on nanopore direct RNA sequencing (DRS), and systematically portrayed the m6A single-molecule epitranscriptome across multiple human cell lines and distant species unprecedentedly. This work unveils a series of previously hidden m6A features and evolutionary patterns.
Our lab recently published a research article titled “Comprehensive analysis across mammalian tissues and cells decipher the underlying mechanism of m6A specificity” in RNA. Congratulations to Guo-Shi Chai! This work systematically evaluates 193 published m6A-seq datasets to identify ~1.5 million high-confidence m6A sites in human and mouse, revealing distinct characteristics and functional roles of m6A across different cell lines and tissues.
Recently, our lab published a research article titled “m6A modification regulates cell proliferation via reprogramming the balance between glycolysis and pentose phosphate pathway” in Communications Biology. Congratulations to Jian-Fei Xi, Biao-Di Liu, and Guo-Run Tang, who contributed as co-first authors! This work reveals how a chemical modification on RNA—known as m6A—acts as a molecular “brake” to suppress cancer cell proliferation by rewiring energy metabolism. These findings offer novel therapeutic strategies for precision oncology.
As the semester draws to a close and we step into the new year, the members of LuoLab have once again made remarkable progress and forged valuable experiences in 2024. To review our growth and progress over the past year, LuoLab held an annual report meeting for 2024 on January 21, 2025. The report was organized into sessions according to research themes, with members taking turns to present their progress and achievements on the path of scientific research, sharing their personal growth and their outlook for the future.