Science on Tap: It's an RNA World

Ribonucleic acids (RNAs) are one of nature’s most versatile biomolecules and possess a rich variety of functions, but why should we care about them? Because RNA has so much to teach us about our past, present, and future. In this talk, I will highlight how RNA has influenced our lives across time. Billions of years ago the first primordial RNA molecules may have given rise to primitive life through molecular evolution. Today, SARS-CoV-2 (now one of the world’s most infamous RNA viruses) infects hundreds of thousands of people daily using clever RNA tricks to fool our cells. In the future, RNA vaccines and therapeutics could radically change how we prevent and treat human disease. I will also share my own research on telomerase RNA and how it informs future research in therapies aiming to treat human aging and cancer.

Speaker: Nick Forino, UC Santa Cruz