By Ann & & Robert H. Lurie Childrens Hospital of Chicago April 6, 2024Researchers have actually identified a vital system in which RNA methylation impacts mitochondrial function, providing promising treatment potential customers for neurological disorders and cancers. This advancement could result in unique therapies by targeting mitochondrial dysfunction through RNA methylation.The lab of Yongchao C. Ma, PhD, at Stanley Manne Childrens Research Institute at Ann & & Robert H. Lurie Childrens Hospital of Chicago found an essential biological system that could result in brand-new treatments for neurological diseases, such as spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) and autism, as well as different cancers. The research study was released in the journal Human Molecular Genetics.Dr. Mas team found that chemical modification of RNA (called RNA methylation) controls mitochondrial function. Mitochondria is best understood for producing energy in the cell. Dr. Ma describes, that mitochondria do much more. It also acts as a signaling center that controls broad biological processes within the cell. Dr. Mas lab previously connected mitochondrial dysfunction to the development of SMA and autism, while other labs have actually implicated it in cancer pathogenesis.Linking RNA Methylation to Disease and Potential Treatments” Our finding develops a critical link in between RNA methylation, mitochondria, and diseases that associate with mitochondrial dysfunction, which indicates that now we have the potential for new treatments for various conditions,” said Dr. Ma, who is the senior author on the study. He holds the Childrens Research Fund Endowed Professorship in Neurobiology at Lurie Childrens and is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics, Neurology, and Neuroscience at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.Dr. Mas lab found that RNA methylation controls mitochondrial function by controlling the production of essential enzymes that are components of mitochondria. They demonstrated in a neural stem cell design and a mouse design that loss of RNA methylation significantly changed mitochondrial function in stem cells and neurons.” We are really excited about this discovery and the guarantee of ingenious treatments, which might include developing modifiers of RNA methylation to correct the mitochondrial flaw,” stated Dr. Ma. “We are also honored to contribute substantially to the research study of RNA methylation. There is rapid development in this field, and we hope that our ongoing research on RNA methylation in the nerve system will bring brand-new insights into brain advancement and neurological disorders.” Reference: “m6A RNA methylation regulates mitochondrial function” by Michael Kahl, Zhaofa Xu, Saravanan Arumugam, Brittany Edens, Mariafausta Fischietti, Allen C Zhu, Leonidas C Platanias, Chuan He, Xiaoxi Zhuang and Yongchao C Ma, 14 March 2024, Human Molecular Genetics.DOI: 10.1093/ hmg/ddae029.