Project Details
Projekt
SPP 1738: Emerging Roles of Non-Coding RNAs in Nervous System Development, Plasticity and Disease
Subject Area
Medicine
Biology
Biology
Term
from 2014 to 2023
Website
Homepage
Project identifier
Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 237182749
The Priority Programme aims at identifying the functionally relevant ncRNA-target interactions, the underlying molecular mechanisms of regulation and the causal links to major neurological disease. This will be achieved by a multidisciplinary approach, combining basic and clinically-oriented research. A focus will be on recently "emerging" non-coding RNAs with a documented gene regulatory function (miRNAs, endo-siRNA, piRNAs, lincRNAs).
To address ncRNA function and regulation as a function of the spatiotemporal context, investigations will be performed at various stages of nervous system development to adulthood (neural stem cell maintenance, reprogramming and differentiation; synapse formation, development and plasticity; higher order processing, cognition and behaviour). Various complexity levels will be considered, from molecular machineries via individual cells to the circuit level. The inclusion of multiple model organisms (e.g., fly, zebrafish, mouse) in the Priority Programme will further allow to obtain insight into the conservation and evolution of ncRNA mechanisms.
Mechanistic projects focus on the interplay between ncRNAs and RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) and its role in the regulation of ncRNA biogenesis and function. Ideally, individual projects combine functional readouts (morphology, physiology, behaviour) with state-of-the-art molecular biology (e.g., massive parallel sequencing), biochemical (e.g., PAR-CLIP, quantitative proteomics) and/or bioinformatics/systems biology (e.g., pathway analysis, ncRNA target prediction) approaches. Therefore, collaboration between participating groups of the Priority Programme is strongly encouraged.
The following projects are explicitly excluded: projects addressing the function of well-studied, "classical" non-coding RNAs with a reported role in RNA metabolism (e.g., canonical splicing (snRNA), RNA modification (snoRNA), ribosome biogenesis (rRNA) or constitutive translation (tRNA)); projects investigating the regulation of RNA metabolism and/or RBPs without a direct link to emerging non-coding RNAs (e.g., mRNA transport, stability, NMD); clinical investigations without a focus on basic research; purely descriptive studies (expression profiling, genetics, bioinformatics, pathway analysis) without an involvement of corresponding functional analysis.
To address ncRNA function and regulation as a function of the spatiotemporal context, investigations will be performed at various stages of nervous system development to adulthood (neural stem cell maintenance, reprogramming and differentiation; synapse formation, development and plasticity; higher order processing, cognition and behaviour). Various complexity levels will be considered, from molecular machineries via individual cells to the circuit level. The inclusion of multiple model organisms (e.g., fly, zebrafish, mouse) in the Priority Programme will further allow to obtain insight into the conservation and evolution of ncRNA mechanisms.
Mechanistic projects focus on the interplay between ncRNAs and RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) and its role in the regulation of ncRNA biogenesis and function. Ideally, individual projects combine functional readouts (morphology, physiology, behaviour) with state-of-the-art molecular biology (e.g., massive parallel sequencing), biochemical (e.g., PAR-CLIP, quantitative proteomics) and/or bioinformatics/systems biology (e.g., pathway analysis, ncRNA target prediction) approaches. Therefore, collaboration between participating groups of the Priority Programme is strongly encouraged.
The following projects are explicitly excluded: projects addressing the function of well-studied, "classical" non-coding RNAs with a reported role in RNA metabolism (e.g., canonical splicing (snRNA), RNA modification (snoRNA), ribosome biogenesis (rRNA) or constitutive translation (tRNA)); projects investigating the regulation of RNA metabolism and/or RBPs without a direct link to emerging non-coding RNAs (e.g., mRNA transport, stability, NMD); clinical investigations without a focus on basic research; purely descriptive studies (expression profiling, genetics, bioinformatics, pathway analysis) without an involvement of corresponding functional analysis.
DFG Programme
Priority Programmes
International Connection
Switzerland
Projects
- Characterization of oligodendroglial sncRNA715 synthesis, its functional role in myelination and identification of novel RNA-transport granule-associated ncRNAs (Applicant Luhmann, Heiko J. )
- Circular RNAs: novel regulators of dendritic protein synthesis during mammalian synapse development (Applicants Dieterich, Christoph ; Schratt, Ph.D., Gerhard Martin )
- Control of mitochondrial function in neurons by microRNAs during inflammation-induced neurodegeneration (Applicant Friese, Manuel A. )
- Coordination Funds (Applicant Schratt, Ph.D., Gerhard Martin )
- Coordination Funds (Applicant Fischer, André )
- Deciphering the non coding RNAs linked to cognitive aging. (Applicant Fischer, André )
- Functional analysis of ncRNAs in Drosophila nervous system development with cell type specificity and single-cell resolution (Applicants Rajewsky, Nikolaus ; Zinzen, Robert Patrick )
- Functional characterisation of the non-coding RNA Pantr1 in FOXG1-dependent forebrain development and Rett-syndrome (Applicants Backofen, Rolf ; Vogel, Tanja )
- Functional characterization of long non-coding RNAs in Alzheimer´s disease (Applicant Arendt, Thomas )
- Functional evaluation of microrna-networks of neuronal differentiation in cell models of limited and full differentiation capability (Applicants Müller, Hans Werner ; Stühler, Kai ; Trompeter, Hans-Ingo )
- LncRNA Functions in Retina Development & Regeneration. (Applicants Hackermüller, Jörg ; Karl, Mike O. )
- Long Non-Coding RNAs and Alternative Splicing Control Cortical Development (Applicant Calegari, Ph.D., Federico )
- Long Non-Coding RNAs in Primate Brain Evolution (Applicants Nowick, Katja ; Stadler, Peter Florian )
- MicroRNA Dysfunction in Psychiatric Disorders: Transgenic Rat Models for Schizophrenia Candidate Gene MIR137 (Applicant Bartsch, Dusan )
- Molecular mechanisms and functional consequences of miR-128 regulation in cortical development (Applicant Wulczyn, F. Gregory )
- Quantitative Interactomics to characterize lncRNPs in vitro and in vivo (Applicant Butter, Falk )
- Regulation and function of the ERV-lncRNAs in postmitotic neurons (Applicant Noh, Kyung Min )
- RNA-binding proteins as regulators of non coding RNA function at the synapse (Applicant Kiebler, Michael )
- The function of long non-coding RNA-Mediator complexes in neurological disease (Applicants Orom, Ulf Andersson ; Schrewe, Heinrich )
- The role of enhancer RNAs in neuronal plasticity and neurogenesis (Applicants Begemann, Gerrit ; Kuhn, Ph.D., Claus-Dieter )
- The role of non-coding RNAs in maintenance of adult neural stem cells and the regulation of neurogenesis (Applicants Götz, Magdalena ; Ninkovic, Jovica )
- The role of the miR-26 family in neurogenesis (Applicants Becker, Matthias ; Fischer, Utz )
- The role of the non-coding RNAs Malat1 and 7SK in motoneuron disease (Applicants Briese, Michael ; Sendtner, Michael A. )
Spokesperson
Professor Dr. André Fischer
