We run several projects devoted to RNA Biology and RNA Therapeutics in vitro and in vivo
1) RNA therapeutics based on modified antisense/siRNA/sgRNA with improved efficacy, biodistribution and stability in vivo.
We are working on the development of RNA-based therapeutics:
– novel antisense oligonucleotides that target RNA splicing to treat hereditary diseases in vitro and in vivo;
– caged siRNA and hybrid nanoparticles to target liver diseases accompanied by inflammation;
– siRNA conjugates to validate targets in the liver;
– chemically modified guide RNA for improved selectivity of genome editing
Joint projects with Prof. Gorin (CPQM, Skoltech) on novel functional nanomaterials for RNA delivery in vitro and in vivo.
2) Validation of RNA helicases and lncRNA as therapeutic targets in vitro and in vivo
– Role of DDX3 helicase in the translation process and as a therapeutic target. Varied level of DDX3 allows us to reveal target mRNAs for DDX3 RNA helicase, hence, define and describe the exact role of DDX3 in translation in the mouse liver.
– Role of LL35 lncRNA in the liver. We found that functional analog of the ncRNA DEANR1 in mouse – LL35 ncRNA is involved in the regulation of transcription. Transcriptome and proteome analysis revealed that LL35 can affect metabolic pathways in liver cells.
Principal Investigator – Timofei Zatsepin |
Team: |
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Olga Sergeeva | Tatiana Abakumova | Nataliya Logvina | |
Svetlana Dukova | |||
PhD Students: |
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Denis Melnik | Evgeniya Shcherbinina | ||
Alumni: |
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Renata Ialchina, MS student in 2017-18; current: PhD student University of Copenhagen, Denmark | Philipp Sergeev, MS student in 2018-19; current: PhD student in Institute for Molecular Medicine, Finland | Mariia Nazarova, MS student in 2018-19; current: PhD student in The Research Institute of Molecular Pathology, Austria | Svetlana Korinfskaya, MS student in 2017-18; current: PhD student in Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, USA |
Dr. Ilya Aparin, junior researcher in 2018-19 – current: postdoc in University of Strasbourg, France | Dominique Leboeuf, PhD student 2017-20; current: scientist in Beam Therapeutics, USA | Ilia Kopnin, MS student in 2019-20; current: PhD student at KU Leuven, Belgium | Aleksandr Shikalov, MS student in 2019-20; |
Downregulation of the Arg/N-degron Pathway Sensitizes Cancer Cells to Chemotherapy in vivo Leboeuf D, Abakumova T, Prikazchikova T, Rhym L, Anderson D, Zatsepin T, Piatkov K. Mol. Ther. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ymthe.2020.01.021
i-Clamp phenoxazine for the fine tuning of DNA i-motif stability. Tsvetkov V, Zatsepin T, Belyaev E, Kostyukevich Y, Shpakovski G, Podgorsky V, Pozmogova G, Varizhuk A, Aralov A. Nucleic Acids Res. 2018, 10, 1093 121.
Research grants/Industry funded research
Research grants/Industry funded research
Skoltech Biomedical Initiative
Next Generation Program: Skoltech – MIT Joint Projects
“Targeted RNA delivery in vivo for therapy by RNAi and genome editing” and “Regulation of Antitumor Response via Modulation of Ubr‐Ubiquitin Ligases In Vivo” Prof. Daniel Anderson, Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
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“Novel RNA conjugates for targeted and functional RNA delivery” Prof. Vadim Shmanai, Laboratory of Bioconjugate Chemistry |
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“Mechanisms of hepatocyte polarization in vivo” Prof. Marino Zerial, Zerial Lab |
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”Cancer cell – specific RNA interference in vivo” Prof. Dr. Andriy Mokhir, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg |