Events

Andrew Varble, PhD - Assistant Professor, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY

 Apr 29, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | K307 (3-6408)

Host: Dr. Mitch O’Connell and Dr. Lynne Maquat

Harri Itkonen, PhD - Associate Professor, Department of Clinical Molecular Biology, EpiGen, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway; EpiGen, Medical Division, Akershus University Hospital, Lørenskog, Norway; Department of Biochemistry and Developmental Biology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland

 Apr 23, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Lower Adolph Aud. (1-7619)

Host: Dr. Paul Boutz

Seychelle Vos, PhD - Associate Professor of Biology, HHMI Freeman Hrabowski Scholar; Department of Biology, MIT, Cambridge, MA

 Apr 16, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Adolph Lower Aud (1-7619)

Host: T32 past trainee, Abby Manning and Dr. Eric Wagner (cosponsored by the NIH NIGMS T32 in CBMS)

Seychelle Vos, PhD - Associate Professor of Biology, HHMI Freeman Hrabowski Scholar; Department of Biology, MIT, Cambridge, MA

 Apr 15, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | K307 (3-6408)

Host: T32 past trainee, Abby Manning and Dr. Eric Wagner (co-sponsored by Dr. Lynne Maquat, PI & Dr. Jeffrey Hayes, Co-PI; Graduates Working in Science (GWIS), and the RNA Society & Lexogen)

Jill Dowen, PhD - Associate Professor, Department of Biochemistry & Biophysics, and of Biology; Associate Director, Curriculum in Genetics and Molecular Biology (GMB); Member, Integrative Program for Biological & Genome Sciences (iBGS); Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC

 Apr 08, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | K307 (3-6408)

Host: Dr. Jeffrey Hayes

Ling-Ling Chen, PhD - Professor, and Director, State Key Laboratory of RNA Innovation, Science and Engineering (RISE), Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China

 Apr 06, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Lower Adolph Aud. (1-7619)

Host: Dr. Lynne Maquat (co-sponsored by the RNA Structure & Function Cluster)

Leemor Joshua-Tor, PhD - HHMI Investigator; W. M. Keck Professor of Structural Biology; Director of Research, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY

 Mar 19, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Adolph Lower Aud (1-7619)

Host: Dr. Lynne Maquat (cosponsored by the NIH NIGMS T32 in CBMS)

Leemor Joshua-Tor, PhD - HHMI Investigator; W. M. Keck Professor of Structural Biology; Director of Research, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY

 Mar 18, 2026 @ 1:00 p.m.

 School of Medicine and Dentistry | Class of '62 Aud. (G-9425)

Host: Dr. Lynne Maquat and Dr. Jeffrey Hayes (co-sponsored by Graduates Working in Science (GWIS))

 Mar 15, 2026 @ 9:00 a.m.

Host: The RNA Institute, U. of Albany & Center for RNA Biology, U. Rochester

Philip Bevilacqua, PhD - Distinguished Professor of Chemistry and of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, Center for RNA Molecular Biology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA

 Mar 11, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | K307 (3-6408)

Host: T32 trainee, Olivia Hiltke and Dr. David Mathews (co-sponsored by Dr. Lynne Maquat, PI & Dr. Jeffrey Hayes, Co-PI and by the RNA Structure & Function Cluster)

Nicole Michmerhuizen, PhD - Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatrics, Hematology and Oncology, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY

 Mar 04, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | K307 (3-6408)

Host: Dr. Eric Wagner and Dr. Josh Munger

Jonathan Herington, PhD - Assistant Professor, Departments of Health Humanities and Bioethics, and of Philosophy, University of Rochester

 Feb 19, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Adolph Lower Aud (1-7619)

Host: Dr. Lynne Maquat

Chuan He, PhD - John T. Wilson Distinguished Service Professor, Department of Chemistry, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL

 Feb 18, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | K307 (3-6408)

Host: Dr. Lynne Maquat (co-sponsored by RNA Society & Lexogen and the RNA Structure & Function Cluster)

Matthew Law - Graduate Student

 Feb 10, 2026 @ 1:30 p.m.

 School of Medicine and Dentistry | SMD Large Auditorium (2-6424)

Host: Advisor: J. Wedekind

Megan Miaro - Graduate Student

 Feb 10, 2026 @ 1:00 p.m.

 School of Medicine and Dentistry | SMD Large Auditorium (2-6424)

Host: Advisor: D. Mathews

Thomas Ossevoort - Graduate Student

The 5ʹ untranslated region (UTR) of mRNA is known to be a key contributor to translational 
regulation. However, many of the mechanisms by which the 5ʹUTR regulates translation are poorly 
understood. To delineate contributions of UTR length and secondary structure, we use non-repetitive 
unstructured sequences (NUSs) designed by the Mathews lab. We show that variation in 5ʹUTR length 
has a modest impact on cap-dependent translation in plant and human cellular extracts, indicating that 
scanning of the 5ʹUTR by the 40S in search of the start codon is not rate limiting. Inhibition of the 
main translational RNA helicase eIF4A by hippuristanol equally decreases cap-dependent translation 
of mRNAs with unstructured 5ʹUTRs of various lengths in WGE. Therefore, our data suggests that 40S 
scanning is a helicase-independent, diffusion-driven process. In collaboration with the Mathews lab, 
we also explored conserved elements of 5ʹUTR secondary structure that regulate translation initiation 
in human cells. We focus our studies on a non-canonical cyclin, CCNI, and demonstrate that the 
computationally identified, evolutionary conserved stem-loop of CCNI 5ʹUTR is involved in 
translation mediated by a non-canonical initiation factor eIF4G2. The removal of upstream Open 
Reading Frames (uORFs) combined with the deletion of the stem-loop completely abrogates 
dependence of CCNI mRNA translation on eIF4G2. Our data is consistent with a model suggesting 
that the presence of uORFs and elements of secondary structure in the 5ʹUTR enables eIF4G2-
mediated translation. Taken together, our studies reveal new roles of 5ʹUTR length and secondary 
structure in translational control.

 Feb 03, 2026 @ 1:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Upper S-Wing Auditorium (3-7619)

Host: Advisor: D. Ermolenko

Keegan Proctor - Graduate Student

Staphylococcus aureus permanently and asymptomatically colonizes ~30% of the human population and acts as a commensal member of the human skin and nasal microbiome. However, S. aureus is also an opportunistic pathogen and a leading cause of serious hospital acquired infections. The ability of S. aureus to overcome host barriers and successfully infect their host relies on a diverse array of virulence factors, many of which are present on mobile genetic elements. Horizontal gene transfer (HGT) of these mobile elements is therefore a major driver of S. aureus pathogenicity, and my project seeks to better understand the factors which influence the transmission of mobile genetic elements.

Conjugation and mobilization of plasmids is a widespread mechanism of HGT in S. aureus, and these plasmids encode numerous virulence factors which benefit S. aureus during infection. However, Transfer of a representative conjugative plasmid into a collection of clinically isolated S. aureus samples revealed highly varied rates between different strains. Using a bioinformatic approach to identify potential determinants of this difference in conjugation rate identified a narrow range of canonical and noncanonical RM systems which impact conjugation in the impacted clinical strains. Given this small subset of factors which inhibit conjugation, further work seeks to develop methods to overcome these barriers in order to leverage conjugation as a genetic tool for manipulating the otherwise experimentally intractable clinical strains of S. aureus. Further understanding of bacterial factors involved in HGT could aid in predicting or potentially controlling the spread of antibiotic resistance as well as rational design of mobile genetic elements as tools.

 Jan 27, 2026 @ 1:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Upper S-Wing Aud. (3-7619)

Host: A. Varble - Advisor

Marlene Belfort, PhD - Distinguished Professor, Department of Biological Sciences; Senior Advisor, The RNA Institute, SUNY University at Albany, NY

 Jan 22, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Adolph Lower Aud (1-7619)

Host: Dr. Lynne Maquat

Jeff Gabell - PhD Candidate

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a monogenic autosomal recessive disorder caused by loss-of-function mutations in the Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator (CFTR) gene. Several classes of the disease exist with various susceptibility to therapeutic intervention. The Lueck Lab explores how tRNAs can be harnessed as a therapeutic tool to target nonsense readthrough or to manipulate elongation efficiency of translation. Class I CFTR mutations, which result from nonsense mutations, account for ~10% of CF cases and are associated with severe CF phenotypes. Previous work has demonstrated that Anti-Codon Edited (ACE-) tRNAs are a promising therapeutic for nonsense diseases. Here, we demonstrate an in vivo reporter mouse for premature termination codon (PTC) readthrough we call Stop-Go-Glow. This model allows for fluorescent and luminescent quantification of PTC readthrough that can be used to evaluate the efficacy, durability, and delivery efficiency of ACE-tRNA technologies in a disease-agnostic manner. Additionally, tRNA pools are a major determinant in translation elongation rates, yet they are highly variable between cell types and are often not considered in available algorithms that determine codon optimality. We have developed screening reporter(s) for identifying specific codon usage within a gene of interest to determine which specific tRNA isodecoders are limiting translation elongation. The goal is to explore the efficacy of natural and non-natural tRNA supplementation targeting elongation bottlenecks and to inform the creation of a ‘functionally optimized’ CFTR transcript by identifying specific codons susceptible to optimization. From these screens, we have determined a list of tRNAs and codons in the CFTR transcript that are promising targets, which we are currently evaluating through functional assays. Importantly, what we learn here can be adapted to other transcripts for generations of therapeutics.

 Jan 20, 2026 @ 1:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Upper S-Wing Auditorium (3-7619)

Host: J. Lueck - Advisor

Jeff Gabell - Graduate Student

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a monogenic autosomal recessive disorder caused by loss-of-function mutations in the Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator (CFTR) gene. Several classes of the disease exist with various susceptibility to therapeutic intervention. The Lueck Lab explores how tRNAs can be harnessed as a therapeutic tool to target nonsense readthrough or to manipulate elongation efficiency of translation. Class I CFTR mutations, which result from nonsense mutations, account for ~10% of CF cases and are associated with severe CF phenotypes. Previous work has demonstrated that Anti-Codon Edited (ACE-) tRNAs are a promising therapeutic for nonsense diseases. Here, we demonstrate an in vivo reporter mouse for premature termination codon (PTC) readthrough we call Stop-Go-Glow. This model allows for fluorescent and luminescent quantification of PTC readthrough that can be used to evaluate the efficacy, durability, and delivery efficiency of ACE-tRNA technologies in a disease-agnostic manner. Additionally, tRNA pools are a major determinant in translation elongation rates, yet they are highly variable between cell types and are often not considered in available algorithms that determine codon optimality. We have developed screening reporter(s) for identifying specific codon usage within a gene of interest to determine which specific tRNA isodecoders are limiting translation elongation. The goal is to explore the efficacy of natural and non-natural tRNA supplementation targeting elongation bottlenecks and to inform the creation of a ‘functionally optimized’ CFTR transcript by identifying specific codons susceptible to optimization. From these screens, we have determined a list of tRNAs and codons in the CFTR transcript that are promising targets, which we are currently evaluating through functional assays. Importantly, what we learn here can be adapted to other transcripts for generations of therapeutics.

 Jan 20, 2026 @ 1:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Upper S-Wing Aud. (3-7619)

Host: Advisor: J. Lueck

Lainie Friedman Ross, MD, PhD - Mark and Lois Taubman Distinguished Professor and Chair, Dept of Health Humanities and Bioethics, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry; and Director, Paul M Schyve MD Center for Bioethics, University of Rochester

 Jan 15, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 School of Medicine and Dentistry | Adolph Lower Aud. (1-7619)

Host: Dr. Lynne Maquat