Generate a tailored SOP for Dr. Wilton Snead. Improve your application with a focused, well-structured draft.
Snead Lab studies the biophysical mechanisms that control RNA processing and localization in cells. The lab is particularly interested in biomolecular condensates, which are concentrated collections of interacting proteins and RNAs that regulate key stages of the RNA lifecycle, including transcription and translation. Precise spatial patterning of RNA at subcellular locations is essential for controlling local protein production. Defects in RNA localization can contribute to the initiation and progression of cancer and neurodegenerative diseases. RNA transport and localization are mediated primarily by RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) that selectively bind specific RNA targets; however, the mechanisms by which RBPs decode the complex information contained in RNA sequences remain largely mysterious. The lab aims to understand how RBPs recognize RNA targets, how RNAs contribute to the formation and function of biomolecular condensates, and how these condensates regulate the RNA lifecycle. Current projects include understanding condensate controls on mRNA retention in the nucleus, uncovering how dysregulated mRNA nuclear retention impacts cancer cell development and motility, deciphering how endomembrane-bound RBPs sort mRNA cargos for long-distance transport, and elucidating how membrane-localized mRNAs are translated into proteins. The lab leverages a variety of approaches including quantitative microscopy, genomics and transcriptomics, biochemical reconstitution, bioinformatics, and live/fixed cell imaging.
Administered by The Graduate School; focuses on Biomechanics, Imaging, Biomaterials, and Regenerative Medicine.