Dr. Sua Myong

Biography

Sua Myong is a Full Professor in the PhD Program in Biological and Biomedical Sciences at Harvard University, with a research focus on non-canonical nucleic acid structures, particularly G-quadruplexes (G4), and their roles in gene expression and transcription regulation. She has discovered that G4 structures arise from guanine-rich sequences in DNA and RNA, and has identified over 400,000 potential G4-forming sequences in the human genome, notably enriched in the promoters of oncogenes and regulatory genes. Her recent studies have highlighted the unexpected role of G4 in enhancing transcription through interactions with R-loops. Additionally, she investigates DNA topology and G4 helicases in collaboration with the Patricia Opresko lab at the University of Pittsburgh, exploring mechanisms of telomere maintenance and the dynamics of shelterin proteins binding to telomere DNA. Her work extends to alternative lengthening of telomeres (ALT) mechanisms observed in certain cancer types, addressing the complex molecular underpinnings of ALT and its implications for targeted cancer therapies. Moreover, she is exploring the role of liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS) in neurodegenerative diseases, including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal lobar dementia (FTLD), and examining how LLPS contributes to pathogenesis through the aggregation of RNA-binding proteins.

Research Interests