9318966 Wickens This award will support an annual meeting of researchers studying the processing of RNA molecules. The post transcriptional modification of RNAs by a variety of mechanisms including splicing, polyadenylation, base modification, nuclease trimming, and editing is crucial to their biological activities. The meeting has been held annually for over 10 years and has played a key role in stimulating research in this broad, important field. %%% The biosynthesis of RNA from DNA is the first step in utilizing genetic information. The RNA is almost always modified in one or more ways before the cell can actually use these molecules for the many functions which they serve. This award supports a conference of researchers who study the modifications of RNA molecules which transform them into key components of the cellular machinery. ***
