Modification on nucleic acid plays a pivotal role in controlling gene expression. Various kinds of modifications greatly increase the information-encoding capacity of DNA and RNA by introducing extra chemical group to existing bases instead of altering the genetic sequences. We are devoting ourselves into developing new tools and technologies to get unambiguous profiles of nucleic acid modifications, especially 6mA on DNA and m6A on RNA.
Genome contains gigantic information not only in coding genes but also in regulatory regions. To solve the genomic puzzle and uncover the principle of life, large-scale technologies and multi-dimensional data are increasingly demanded. By integrating big data, we hope to dissect the mysteries of genome piece by piece, and eventually, understand the basic rules how does the genome direct life.
Genome editing tools are revolutionizing the paradigm of biological researches. Here we try to utilize this tool to study the functions of genes or other regulatory elements including epigenetic modification markers. Besides the focus on improving the tool itself, we are interested in applying the innovated technology in extraordinary system, such as green alga and parasites, and understand the rule of gene regulation from a new perspective.
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.
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Cooperating with Nan Cao, our lab published an article, which entitled “Co-effects of m6A and chromatin accessibility dynamics in the regulation of cardiomyocyte differentiation”, in Epigenetics & Chromatin on August 11th. Xue-Hong Liu is the co-first author. Ze-Hui Ren, Hong-Xuan Chen and Ying Zhang also made great contribution to this work. Congratulations to them!
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N6-methyladenosine (m6A) is the most abundant and thoroughly studied RNA modification base in vertebrates. Currently, m6A detection is mainly based on second-generation sequencing methods, which have problems such as false positives, complex operations, and limited to site detection. Gradually, nanopore sequencing technology (Oxford Nanopore Technologies, ONT) has become an ideal alternative method. Although many highly complex and advanced computational tools have been developed to detect and quantify m6A via nanopore sequencing, there is still a lack of research to thoroughly evaluate and compare these tools.
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