Junfei Ma: The Plant Cell First Author

Junfei Ma, first author of “A nuclear import pathway exploited by pathogenic noncoding RNAs”

Current Position: Ph.D. candidate at Mississippi State University, MS, US.

Education: Expected to graduate in the Fall of 2022 at Mississippi State University.

Non-scientific Interests: Travelling, Cooking.

Brief bio: I joined Dr. Ying Wang’s lab at Mississippi State University since 2018 to pursue my Ph.D degree. My research is mainly focused on the pathogenic mechanism of potato spindle tuber viroid (PSTVd) and its interaction with plant hosts. PSTVd is a pathogenic single-stranded circular non-coding RNA that replicates in the nucleus. Our current study illustrates a molecular mechanism in regulating RNA nuclear import pathway through the activity of an Importin alpha subunit (Impa-4). We also uncovered a conserved RNA motif (C-loop) that is critical for RNA nuclear import through interaction with cellular Virp1 protein. These results have broad significance in understanding of subviral RNA infection processes and the regulation over RNA nuclear import.

姓名：马骏飞（“外源致病性非编码RNA利用宿主细胞核运输机制”第一作者）

目前职位：密西西比州立大学在读博士生

教育经历：密西西比州立大学生物系博士生

兴趣爱好：旅行、烹饪

我于2018年起在密西西比州立大学王颖博士实验室开始攻读博士学位。我的研究主要集中在马铃薯纺锤形块茎类病毒（PSTVd）的致病机制以及与植物宿主之间的相互作用。 PSTVd 是一种在细胞核中复制的致病性单链环状非编码 RNA。我们目前的工作提出了一种通过Importin alpha-4介导的 RNA 进核分子机制。我们验证了 细胞编码的Virp1 蛋白直接识别类病毒上存在的一个 C – loop结构来完成基于 Importin alpha-4的细胞核运输过程。这些研究加深了对类病毒感染机制和对RNA 进入细胞核的调控机制的理解。