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A central regulator of inflammation, nuclear factor kappa B (NFkB), has been implicated as a driver of the autoimmune disease multiple sclerosis (MS). A team led by David Hafler, of the ӳý and Yale School of Medicine, demonstrated that MS-associated variants alter NFkB signaling pathways, leading to increased activation of NFkB and making cells more responsive to inflammatory stimuli. The work, featured in , suggests that rapid genetic screening for variants associated with NFκB signaling may identify individuals amenable to therapeutics targeting this pathway.

To investigate the role of long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) in brain development, a team led by John Rinn and Paola Arlotta of the ӳý and Harvard Stem Cell Institute, and Harvard’s Giulio Tomassy, analyzed the expression of lncRNAs in the developing and adult brain using lncRNA-knockout mouse models. The resulting map of gene expression revealed surprising spatial temporal patterns where a lncRNA is expressed embryonically but not in adult brains and vice-versa. The researchers also found that about 25 percent of lncRNA deletions resulted in a “cis-like” regulatory role on local gene expression. , which appears in PNAS, suggests several avenues for future studies on these molecules in brain development and physiology.

The Global Alliance for Genomics and Health (GA4GH), an international coalition dedicated to improving human health by maximizing the potential of genomic medicine, marked its second anniversary this month. Today, more than 250 GA4GH Members are coming together in the Netherlands to collaborate on the development of innovative, integrated solutions that promote genomic and clinical data sharing, and the creation of a global learning system in genomic medicine.

A team of researchers from the ӳý and the Harvard Stem Cell Institute has developed CRISP-Disp, a method that expands on the CRISPR-Cas9 system, allowing researchers to display multiple, large RNA structures on the Cas9 protein. The method enables the researchers to deliver artificial RNA devices — such as RNA processors, scaffolds, and imaging applications — to specific points on the genome. The work was led by John Rinn who, with his colleagues, is using the approach to better study long, non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), which are hard to study using traditional knockout methods. With CRISP-Disp, the researchers can relocate lncRNAs to study them in isolation. To learn more, read the team’s paper, which was published online by the journal Nature Methods.