School of Life Sciences, SYSU Has Made a Significant Progress in the Research of Non-coding RNAs of African Trypanosoma

Source: School of Life Sciences, SYSU

Funded by Natural Sciences Foundation of China and National “973” Project and cooperated with Professor F. Ayala, the renowned evaluation scholar of University of California, Irvine, former presidential science adviser and member of U. S. Academy of Sciences, a significant progress has been made in the research non-coding RNAs of African trypanosoma by Lun Zhaorong and Qu Lianghu, professors of School of Life Sciences, SYSU. Though a large-scale deep sequencing and the analysis techniques of bioinformatics and relevant gene function, they proved that siRNA, which is produced by African trypanosoma brucei’s pseudogene, has been playing an important role in the growth, differentiation and regulation of trypanosoma. So far, this is the first time to prove the important biological function of African trypanosoma by experiments in the world. The research result was published in PNAS on line on April 29, 2011. The discovery of regulatory function of siRNA during different periods, which was the origin of pseudogene, has provided a new clue for the further study of pseudogene biology and its origin and evaluation.