About this Research Topic

Background

Plants, as immovable organisms, are always subject to adverse factors from the surrounding environment. Plants have evolved a very efficient information transmission system that allows them to react as quickly as possible. The phloem is the carrier of this information transmission. There is increasing evidence that many RNAs move long distances on the information highway. RNAs are produced in the nucleus, and they are not uniformly distributed in the cytoplasm. They can even leave the cell where they were transcribed, pass through the plasmodesmata and enter the phloem through multiple layers of cells. This fine-tuning process contains many mysteries. Various modifications of RNA, the secondary structure of RNA, the interaction between RNA and its binding protein, and other factors may be the fundamental reason for the function that RNA finally endows long-distance movement function.

RNA not only contains genetic information but also has the function of gene expression regulation. Recently, more and more attention has been focused on RNA mobility because of its intracellular and intercellular movement characteristics. What drives RNA moving and how RNA moves are a fascinating topic. Existing studies have shown that the methylated RNAs, the tRNA structurally similar RNAs, and the RNA binding proteins related to moving may have a direct relationship with RNA mobility. With the progress of sequencing technology, the development of new RNA imaging technology, and the discovery of phase separation, we believe RNA mobility could have more in-depth exploration.

Manuscripts on the following subthemes are welcomed, but are not limited, to the following topics:

1. How many kinds of RNA modifications are there in the plants? And which ones among them are related to RNA movement?
2. How to make RNA structure analysis technology more efficient and practical? What kind of RNA secondary or tertiary structures are directly related to RNA movement?
3. Except for proteins, do other compounds bind to RNAs? And do they have any roles in the RNA movement?
4. RNA visualization or labelling is an important entry point for studying RNA function. Any new efficient technologies for RNA visualization will be warmly welcomed.
5. What drives RNA asymmetrical localization in cytoplasmic?
6. How do host and pathogen factors determine RNA movement through plasmodesmata?
7. Any experimental technique which can confirm RNA movement is equally welcome.

Keywords: RNA modification, RNA structure, RNA labelling, RNA localization, RNA Movement Trajectory, RNA-binding molecules, RNA selective transport through plasmodesmata

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