During this STTR program, Electronic BioSciences (EBS) proposes to develop a nanopore based system around our University of Utah collaborators newly developed technology that will be capable of identifying and quantifying sequence specific RNA modifications. A system capable of quantitative, low cost, high throughput, RNA modification characterization has the capability to elucidate the roles of these modifications in cellular signaling, and improve our understanding of gene regulation and associated disease states. The goal of this Phase I program is to demonstrate proof-of-concept for the RNA modification characterization concept, and determine the parameters that will allow our team to develop a complete RNA modification characterization system during a follow-on Phase II program.
This program is aimed at developing a new method and system for the characterization of sequence specific RNA modifications. This system will be extremely useful in genomic research, investigating cellular metabolism and disease states, and other settings where epigenetic regulation is of interest. The need for a system capable of characterizing mRNA modifications from a given sample with high throughput is highlighted by the current number of known RNA modifications, but the limited understanding of their context and function.
| Perera, Rukshan T; Fleming, Aaron M; Peterson, Amberlyn M et al. (2016) Unzipping of A-Form DNA-RNA, A-Form DNA-PNA, and B-Form DNA-DNA in the ?-Hemolysin Nanopore. Biophys J 110:306-314 |
