Abstract
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) impact nearly all biological processes by serving as sequence-specific regulators of gene expression. The biogenesis of miRNAs is a multi-step process involving the transcription of MIR genes into primary miRNAs (pri-miRNAs), the processing of pri-miRNAs into pre-miRNAs and then to miRNA/miRNA* duplexes, and the loading of miRNAs into an effector argonaute (AGO) protein. The miRNA-AGO complex regulates gene expression through degradation or translation repression of target mRNAs. Although major players mediating miRNA biogenesis or miRNA activities have been uncovered, where miRNAs are synthesized or act in the cell and how the subcellular sites affect miRNA activities are poorly understood. In this lecture, the speaker will discuss their recent findings that implicate the nuclear pore and endoplasmic reticulum in the biogenesis/activities of plant miRNAs.
About the speaker
Prof Xuemei Chen received her BS from Peking University in 1988 and PhD from Cornell University in 1995. Then she started her postdoctoral work studying the genetics of floral patterning at the California Institute of Technology. In 1999, Prof Chen started work as an Assistant Professor at Waksman Institute of Microbiology at Rutgers University. She then moved to University of California at Riverside in 2005 and became a full professor in 2009.
Prof Chen is engaged in research in two major directions. On one hand she studies the biogenesis, degradation, modes of actions and biological functions of non-coding RNAs. On the other, she dissects the mechanisms underlying stem cell maintenance and/or termination. Her recent publications include “Verification of DNA Motifs in Arabidopsis using CRISPR/Cas9 Mediated Mutagenesis”, “Transcriptional landscapes of Axolotl (Ambystoma Mexicanum)” and “KLU suppresses megasporocyte cell fate through SWR1-mediated activation of WRKY28 expression in Arabidopsis”.
Prof Chen’s research is well recognized through numerous awards. She was elected to the National Academy of Sciences (2013), and was named a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (2011). She was also a Plant Biology Investigator by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation (2011).
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