Mª Esperanza Cerdán

The so-called 'dark transcriptome' consists of non-coding RNA, i.e. RNA that does not provide instructions for building proteins. A study published in the journal Science Signaling used long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) and modified them to attenuate acute inflammation in mice and human cells. The authors are confident that this could open up a new field of therapeutic development.

The Karolinska Institute has awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine or Physiology to Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun for the discovery of microRNAs, small RNA fragments that do not contain instructions for making proteins but instead participate in the regulation of gene expression. Their role is fundamental in processes such as cell differentiation, and their alteration can influence diseases like cancer.