Welcome to Julia Chekanova Laboratory

Research efforts in the laboratory are directed towards developing a deeper understanding of various cellular RNA transactions, primarily using two model systems – bakers yeast S.cerevisiae and higher plant A. thaliana. We also continue to explore all scientific directions previously headed in collaboration with Dr. Dmitry Belostotsky (1964-2009, Current Opinion in Cell Biology, ASPB News Obituary).

I.  On the yeast side of the lab, we investigate the quality control mechanisms, which ensure that only fully processed and correctly assembled mRNP complexes are released from the site of transcription and exported into the cytoplasm, while aberrant mRNPs are retained in the vicinity of the sites of transcription and ultimately degraded. Despite the widespread occurrence of such proofreading mechanisms from yeast to humans, mechanisms behind these quality control checkpoints remain poorly understood. To study these processes we use a combination of different approaches, including deconvolution microscopy-based imaging techniques, yeast genetics and genomics.

II.  On the plant side of the lab, our efforts are directed mostly towards understanding how RNA exosome complex regulates various steps of gene expression in eukaryotes. The exosome complex is evolutionally conserved, functionally versatile macromolecular machine, which plays central role in RNA metabolism both in the nucleus and in the cytoplasm, and also has a prominent role in gene silencing. In our previous work we have obtained first genome-wide maps of the tightly repressed “hidden” layer of the exosome-controlled transcriptome, which also includes a multitude of non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs). Our laboratory continues to pursue in depth investigation of the role of the exosome in ncRNAs metabolism and regulation of gene expression.