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DTSTAMP:20251011T103733Z
DESCRIPTION:Abstract:\n\nPh.D. work at 9I���������\n\nPart of my PhD 
 research focused on telomeric DNA sequences with tandem G- and C-rich repe
 ats that fold into G-quadruplex (G4) and i-motif structures\, respectively
 . While G4 structures likely play a role in transcriptional regulation and
  telomere maintenance\, less is known about the role of i-motif structures
  in biological processes since they exhibit little thermodynamic stability
  at physiological conditions. We introduced 2'-fluoroarabinose and 5-methy
 lcytosine modifications into C-rich telomeric sequences and observed stabl
 e i-motifs at pH values close to neutrality (1\, 2). Remarkably\, the fluo
 roarabinose substitutions “trapped” telomeric G4 and i-motif structures pr
 eventing their re-association to form a duplex\, hence demonstrating that 
 these structures can co-exist within telomeric DNA (3). The stabilization 
 of DNA i-motif via chemical modifications will pave the way to examine the
  effect of i-motifs on telomerase activity\, discover small molecule ligan
 ds and proteins that bind these structures under physiological conditions\
 , and develop i-motif-based nanodevices.\n\n	Abou Assi\, Damha et al.\, Nuc
 leic Acids Research\, 2016\, 44\, 4998-5009.\n	Abou Assi\, Damha et al.\, C
 hemistry European Journal\, 2018\, 24\, 471-477.\n	Abou Assi\, Damha et al.
 \, Nucleic Acids Research\, 2017\, 45\, 11535-11546.\n\nPostdoctoral work 
 at Duke University\n\nLike DNA and proteins\, RNA is subject to a number o
 f modifications\, termed post-transcriptional or epitranscriptomic modific
 ations\, which recently emerged as critical regulators of gene expression.
  More than 100 epitranscriptomic modifications have been characterized to 
 date and are abun­dant in mRNA and lncRNA\, influencing their fate and fun
 ction. My postdoctoral work aims to determine whether epitranscriptomic mo
 difications have the potential to trap transient short-lived low-abundance
  RNA excited states (ESs) known to form by reshuffling base pairs in and a
 round non-canonical motifs. This entails high-resolution structural determ
 ination of ESs via NMR relaxation dispersion (RD) experiments and evaluati
 ng the consequences of trapping ESs on fundamental biological processes.\n
 \nBio: \n\nI pursued my undergraduate studies in Chemistry at the American
  University of Beirut in Lebanon. Then I did my Ph.D. in the 9I��������� Chemis
 try Department\, in the laboratory of Prof. Masad Damha\, with a research 
 focus on characterizing structures relevant to telomere biology. Currently
  I am a postdoctoral fellow at Duke University under the joint supervision
  of Drs. Hashim Al-Hashimi and Christopher Holley where I am studying the 
 effect of epitranscriptomic modifications on RNA structural dynamics and b
 iological function.\n
DTSTART:20190423T170000Z
DTEND:20190423T183000Z
LOCATION:Room 10\, Maass Chemistry Building\, CA\, QC\, Montreal\, H3A 0B8\
 , 801 rue Sherbrooke Ouest
SUMMARY:The 2019 Winkler Award Lecture: Hala Abou Assi - Investigating the 
 Impact of Chemical Modifications on Nucleic Acid Structure and Dynamics
URL:/chemistry/channels/event/2019-winkler-award-lectu
 re-hala-abou-assi-investigating-impact-chemical-modifications-nucleic-acid
 -294852
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