This Project Grant award from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS), under the Biomedical Research and Research Training program (CFDA 93.859), provides $350,635.00 in funding to the Regents of the University of Minnesota to develop new fluorescent aptamer tags for visualizing RNA in complex biological systems. The project aims to select fluorescent aptamers that do not form G-quadruplex structures, which can impair the use of aptamers as RNA imaging tags, particularly in eukaryotic and whole-organism settings. The research will focus on selecting non-G-quadruplex aptamers against azo dyes and endogenous pigments to enable robust live-cell RNA imaging, with the long-term goal of whole-organism RNA visualization. The project will utilize these new aptamer tags to characterize Lin28-mRNA interactions, which is not possible with existing G-quadruplex-forming aptamers. The award period runs from September 10, 2024, to August 31, 2029.
Mod # | Description | Reason For Modification | Federal Obligation (Click to sort descending) | Date (Click to sort ascending) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Not listed | $350.6k | 9/19/24 |