Cutting edge Seminar

 

 

Speaker:  Tsutomu Suzuki  (Professor, Lab of RNA biochemistry, The University of Tokyo）

Title:  Metabolic regulation of RNA modification associated with human disease

 

 

 

Date&Time: 3 Oct. (Wed.) 2018, 12:00- 13:00

Venue: Conference Room(1F), IMEG

 

Abstract:

RNA molecules are frequently modified post-transcriptionally, and these modifications are required for proper RNA functions. To date, over 130 different type of chemical modifications have been identified in various RNA molecules across all domains of life. There are still a number of novel modifications to be discovered. RNA modifications appear to confer chemical diversities to simple RNA molecules basically composed of four letters, to acquire a greater variety of cellular functions. These modifications play critical roles in stability and functions of RNA molecules.

It has been generally thought that tRNA modifications are stable and static, and their frequencies are rarely regulated. We previously reported that lack of tRNA modification causes  major classes of mitochondrial diseases including MELAS and MERRF. Deficient tRNA modification results in defective protein synthesis, leading to mitochondrial dysfunction. These findings provided the first evidence of human disease caused by an RNA modification disorder. We call “RNA modopathy” as a new category of human diseases. I am going to show our recent studies on tRNA modifications associated with human diseases and their dynamic regulation by sensing intracellular metabolites under physiological condition.