Jonathan Perreault
INRS - Institut Armand-Frappier, Canada
Title: The versatility of nucleic acids in biology and their promise in medicine
Biography
Biography: Jonathan Perreault
Abstract
Since the double helix structure of DNA has been solved more than fifty years ago, the field of molecular biology has produced tremendous discoveries which impacted medicine on many levels. The study of DNA and RNA unveiled the code of all living things and helped understand all processes in biology, but nucleic acids were revealed as fascinating subjects on their own. For instance, the discoveries of ribozymes and riboswitches revealed the potential duality of RNA, which can bear information and function at the same time. Largely fuelled by technology advances, numerous discoveries regarding both DNA and RNA exposed the complexity and beauty of these macromolecules. In parallel, many of these discoveries led to the development of new drugs using or targeting nucleic acids, as well as approaches that hold great promises for the future of both diagnostics and therapeutics.
