The Swiss Initiative for RNA & Disease (SIRD) is now online. As the successor to NCCR RNA & Disease (2014–2026), SIRD continues to connect RNA researchers across Switzerland and promotes collaboration, education, scientific exchange, and innovation in RNA biology and disease research. 🌐 sird.info

A tiny chemical tweak changed medicine! 💉 Discover how RNA modifications made efficient mRNA vaccines against Covid-19 possible, for which the 2023 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded. www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SQd... @snsf.ch @unibe.ch @ethz.ch @nobelprize.org @rnasociety.bsky.social

For gene expression,there exist "dimmer switches"!Discover how microRNAs fine-tune protein production in health&disease.For their discovery,the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded. www.youtube.com/watch?v=qoUo... @snsf.ch @unibe.ch @ethz.ch @nobelprize.org @rnasociety.bsky.social

Why do we age? 🧬 Meet telomerase, the molecular machine that rebuilds chromosome ends and its roles in health & disease. For its discovery, the 2009 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded. www.youtube.com/watch?v=dXLE... @snsf.ch @unibe.ch @ethz.ch @nobelprize.org @rnasociety.bsky.social

Reprogramming cells with precision! 🎯 Learn how RNA interference (RNAi) silences specific genes to treat diseases. For its discovery, the 2006 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded. www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZY1... @snsf.ch @unibe.ch @ethz.ch @nobelprize.org @rnasociety.bsky.social

Our genes come in bits & pieces!🧬Learn how splicing "cuts & pastes" RNA to create different proteins from a single gene, for its discovery the 1993 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded. www.youtube.com/watch?v=-x7H... @snsf.ch @unibe.ch @ethz.ch @nobelprize.org @rnasociety.bsky.social

Preprint by the Leidel, Thiel & Pillai labs with co-1st authors R. Pandey & N. Ebert "Loss of host factor-mediated m6Am methylation of the viral RNA cap impairs SARS CoV-2 replication" @biorxivpreprint.bsky.social doi.org/10.64898/202... @profvolkerthiel.bsky.social @mcm5s2u.bsky.social @unibe.ch

Imagine curing diseases by rewriting the code of life!🧬Discover how CRISPR/Cas9, guided by RNA, acts as molecular scissors to precisely edit genomes, for which the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rz-... @snsf.ch @unibe.ch @ethz.ch @nobelprize.org

DNA holds the blueprints, but how are proteins built?Meet the ribosome, a nanomachine.For the studies of it,the 2009 Chemistry Nobel Prize was awarded. Watch the video on YouTube with subtitles in English, French & German: www.youtube.com/watch?v=2txJ... @snsf.ch @unibe.ch @ethz.ch @nobelprize.org

Preprint by the Polacek lab and collaborators with first author EunBin Kong "Stress-induced vtRNA1-1 modulates redox homeostasis and ferroptosis susceptibility in hepatocellular carcinoma cells" @biorxivpreprint.bsky.social doi.org/10.64898/202... @unibe.ch

How did life begin?🧬Before DNA & proteins, RNA paved the way for modern life. Learn about "ribozymes". The discoverers of catalytic RNAs were awarded the 1989 Nobel Prize in Chemistry! Watch the video with subtitles in DE, EN & FR: www.youtube.com/watch?v=LjtN... @snsf.ch @unibe.ch @ethz.ch

RNA Explained Video Series: From CRISPR to Vaccines - 8 RNA Discoveries That Revolutionized Biology!🎬Explore 8 Nobel Prize-winning breakthroughs. They are the final public outreach activity of the NCCR RNA & Disease. Join us on this journey into RNA science! Coming soon! @snsf.ch @ethz.ch @unibe.ch

Paper by the Allain and Jeschke labs with first author Cristina Nguyen "Characterization of flexible RNA binding by tandem RNA recognition motifs through integrative ensemble modelling" in Nucleic Acids Research ( @narjournal.bsky.social) nccr-rna-and-disease.ch/news/article... @ethz.ch #NMR

Review by the Mühlemann Lab with first author Wojciech Teodorowicz "Molecular determinants and therapeutic targeting of stop codon readthrough in eukaryotic translation" @jmolbiol.bsky.social nccr-rna-and-disease.ch/news/article... @omuhlemann-lab.bsky.social @unibe.ch

Publication by the Corn lab and collaborators with first author Lena Kobel " DisTAL-Seq: A TALEN-specific adaptation of DISCOVER-Seq for off-target profiling" in Molecular Therapy Nucleic Acids: nccr-rna-and-disease.ch/news/article... @jcornlab.bsky.social @moltherapy.bsky.social @ethz.ch

🔬 We are pleased to welcome Kamena Kostova (Stowers Institute for Medical Research, USA) as the next speaker in our NCCR RNA & Disease Seminar Series! 🗓️ 23.03.2026 – 16:30 📍 University of Bern, DCBP 🗓️ 24.03.2026 – 11:00 📍ETH Zurich, Hönggerberg For more Info: lnkd.in/ei92r5gg @unibe.ch @ethz.ch

Publication by the Gatfield and Jonas labs with co-first authors Enes Arpa and Michael Taschner "Active Site Assembly by SMG5 as a Mechanism for SMG6 Endonuclease Licencing in Nonsense-mediated mRNA Decay" @jmolbiol.bsky.social nccr-rna-and-disease.ch/news/article... @unil.bsky.social @ethz.ch

We would like to congratulate Sebastian Leidel ( @mcm5s2u.bsky.social ) on receiving the 2026 RNA Society Mid-Career Award! nccr-rna-and-disease.ch/news/article... @rnasociety.bsky.social @unibe.ch @snsf.ch

Our Lab is searching a postdoc for an exciting ERC-funded project that will start this summer. Apply if you’re passionate about multi-omics, cutting-edge computational approaches, and exploring biological questions across the animal 🪼 🪱 🐞 🦎 🦋 🕷️ tree of life www.biozentrum.unibas.ch/open-positio...

🔬 Next in the NCCR RNA & Disease Seminar Series: Prof. Danny Nedialkova (Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, Germany)! 🗓️ 02.03.2026: 16:30 – University of Bern, DCBP 🗓️ 03.03.2026: 16:00 – ETH Zurich, Hönggerberg More info: buff.ly/7Lkx00l... @unibe.ch @ethz.ch @snf-fns.ch

🗓️ We are pleased to announce the NCCR RNA & Disease Seminar Series for the Spring Semester 2025/2026. For more information, visit: lnkd.in/ei92r5gg @unibe.ch @ethz.ch @snf-fns.ch

Congratulations!

This weekend, the 37th edition of the Telethon takes place on December 6 & 7, which raises donations for supporting families with children with rare genetic diseases and research on these diseases: telethon.ch/de/

Congratulations to Raphael Morscher (Associate Member) on becoming an EMBO Young Investigator!

Six days left to submit abstracts, also for talks, and register for the Swiss RNA Workshop 2026! The deadline has been extended to December 8, 2026. swissrnaws.dcbp.unibe.ch

We are very excited that our work on Torsins, dystonia and NE membrane fusion is out on bioRxiv: doi.org/10.1101/2025... Fantastic collaboration with Madhav Jagannathan and the labs of Gautam Dey and Stefano Vanni!

Now in @embojournal.org: Researchers in @labgrosshans.bsky.social & UCSC found that similar molecular machineries control daily circadian rhythms & developmental timing—showing that evolution can repurpose core timing systems to coordinate both daily cycles & growth. www.fmi.ch/news-events/...

Preprint by the lab of Jacob Corn & collaborators with first author Moritz Schlapansky "Cell-stereotyped DNA repair outcomes are widespread during genome editing" @biorxivpreprint.bsky.social doi.org/10.1101/2025... @jcornlab.bsky.social @ethz.ch

Publication by the Kutay lab with first author Claudia Gafko "Establishment of an imaging-based screening pipeline for the identification of human ribosome biogenesis inhibitors" in BMC Biol nccr-rna-and-disease.ch/news/article... @kutaylab.bsky.social @ethz.ch

Paper by the Sander & Lee labs & collaborators with co-1st authors Gregory Phelps & Sinem Kurt "Prodrug florfenicol amine is activated by intrinsic resistance to target Mycobacterium abscessus" @natmicrobiol.nature.com nccr-rna-and-disease.ch/news/article...

Publication by the Allain lab with co-first authors Johannes Schmoll and Mihajlo Novakovic (also co-corresponding) "Water-detected NMR allows dynamic observations of repeat-expansion RNA condensates" in Nature Chemistry nccr-rna-and-disease.ch/news/article... @ethz.ch @natchem.nature.com #NMRchat

🔬 Next in the NCCR RNA & Disease Seminar Series: Prof. Tsutomu Suzuki (University of Tokyo, Japan)! 📅 10.11.2025: 16:30 – University of Bern, DCBP 📅 11.11.2025: 16:00 – ETH Zurich, Hönggerberg More info: nccr-rna-and-disease.ch/education/nc... @unibe.ch @ethz.ch @snf-fns.ch

Publication by the Morscher Lab & collaborators, including the Leidel lab w/ 1st author Sarah Cherkaoui "Reprogramming neuroblastoma by diet-enhanced polyamine depletion" @nature.com NCCR News: nccr-rna-and-disease.ch/news/article... @cherkaos.bsky.social @mcm5s2u.bsky.social @unibe.ch @snsf.ch

Thanks to CRISPR/Cas technology, researchers can precisely edit genetic material to treat hereditary diseases. To achieve this, they need to identify undesirable cuts in the genome at an early juncture. Pioneer Fellow Lilly van de Venn is developing such testing methods. ethz.ch/en/news-and-...

Paper by the Schneider lab( @schneian.bsky.social ) & collaborators w/co-first authors Corinne von Känel & Salome Aeschlimann "TbTim20 facilitates protein import at a low membrane potential in trypanosomes lacking the mitochondrial genome" @febsj.bsky.social nccr-rna-and-disease.ch/news/article...

🔬 Next in the NCCR RNA & Disease Seminar Series: Prof. Olivia Rissland (Univ. of Colorado School of Medicine, USA)! 📅 27.10. 16:30 – University of Bern, DCBP 📅 28.10. 15:00 – ETH Zurich, Hönggerberg 👉 More info: nccr-rna-and-disease.ch/education/nc... @unibe.ch @ethz.ch @snf-fns.ch

Preprint by the Allain lab with co-1st authors Gyula Palfy and Johannes Schmoll "Multiplexed analysis of multicomponent biomolecular condensates without any tag" @biorxivpreprint.bsky.social doi.org/10.1101/2025... @ethz.ch #NMRChat

🚀 New preprint! We used a human cell-free translation screen (~28 000 compounds) to discover NT-2, a #Fusarium -derived #mycotoxin that blocks human ribosomes. #Cryo-EM at 1.72 Å reveals a link between chemical inhibition and ribosome dormancy. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Watch Lucas' amazing artistic/musical rendition of C. elegans larval development and our work on developmental timing and molting here youtu.be/-hGHYRvw87w and read on his inspiration and challenges below

Publication by the Mühlemann & Chakrabarti Labs w/ 1st author Sofia Nasif "UPF1 shuttles between nucleus and cytoplasm independently of its RNA binding and ATPase activities” @rnajournal.bsky.social nccr-rna-and-disease.ch/news/article... @omuhlemann-lab.bsky.social @unibe.ch

All cells – from mammalian cells to microbes – can follow different biological paths. Whether they grow and divide, specialise, age or die depends on the pathway they take. New findings by researchers at ETH Zurich could help influence a cell’s decisions to target diseases such as cancer.

Preprint by the Grosshans lab w/ co-1st authors Dimos Gaidatzis, Maike Graf-Landua & Stephen P. Methot "A scheduler for rhythmic gene expression" @biorxivpreprint.bsky.social doi.org/10.1101/2025... @labgrosshans.bsky.social @smethot.bsky.social @fmiscience.bsky.social

 📅 Program of the NCCR RNA & Disease Seminar Series for the Autumn Semester 25/26:
For more information visit: nccr-rna-and-disease.ch/news/article...
 @unibe.ch @ethz.ch @snf-fns.ch

*️⃣ Step-by-step STAR protocol for Cell-free translation and mRNA decay *️⃣ What to do (and what not to do 😅) guide based on our work on Nsp1 published in @cp-cellreports.bsky.social. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti... @unibe.ch @mcid-unibe.bsky.social @nccr-rna-disease.bsky.social @snf-fns.ch

🌙🔬 Our “RNA – Master of Versatility” booth at Nacht der Forschung 2025 was a hit! Big thanks to our Science Knights and amazing organizers. 💙🙌 Read more: nccr-rna-and-disease.ch/news/article... #ndfunibern @unibe.ch

Publication by the Polacek lab & collaborators w/ co-1st authors Stefano Gallo & Anastasiia Suspitsyna "Regulation of angiogenesis and cancer cell proliferation by human vault RNA1-2 Open Access" @narjournal.bsky.social Cancer academic.oup.com/narcancer/ar... @unibe.ch

Publication by the Becskei & Zavolan labs w/ co-1st authors Asier González, Muskan Pandey & Niels Schlusser "Multi-omic assessment of mRNA translation dynamics in liver cancer cell lines" in Scientific Data buff.ly/WYwzw5V @mihaelazavolan.bsky.social @biozentrum.unibas.ch

🔬✨ Join us this Saturday (September 6) | 16:00-23:00 at Nacht der Forschung 2025 at the University of Bern ✨ Come and check out our booth "RNA – Master of Versatility" 👩‍🔬 Meet our researchers & enjoy pipetted cocktails at the reproduzierBAR! www.nachtderforschung.unibe.ch #ndfunibern @unibe.ch

Finden wir Gold auf der Grossen Schanze? Finden Sie es heraus 👉 youtu.be/fNrbVeYL6Cs. Wollen auch Sie mehr über Ihren Boden erfahren? Dann lassen Sie ihn kostenlos an der Nacht der Forschung analysieren – einfach eine handvoll mitbringen! 📍 Am 06.09., ab 16 Uhr, Grosse Schanze Bern #ndfunibern

An der Nacht der Forschung zeigen wir, wie vielfältig Sprache sein kann! Kommen Sie vorbei – Eintritt frei! 📍 6. September 2025, ab 16 Uhr, Grosse Schanze Bern www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHFn... #ndfunibern