- In our latest preprinted work, Yajie and Kostas combine computational analysis with precision KO of single variant U1 snRNA genes in human iPSCs to find pronounced deregulation of both gene expression and splicing that seem to affect the cell cycle and the differentiation potency of stem cells. 1/n
- We were motivated by my old @dunnschool.bsky.social neighbors, Shona Murphy and Dawn O’Reilly, who showed that these (falsely presumed) U1 pseudo genes may actually be functional in their 2013 Genome Res paper… 2/nSep 16, 2025 08:34
- …so Kostas generated vU1-specific KOs using CRISPR-Cas9 in hiPSCs of the two most expressed variants, and Yajie analyzed their effects via total RNA-seq data, while @carmeloferrai.bsky.social provided undirected differentiation tests. 3/n
- The KO effects were far more pronounced than what the relative vU1 abundance (relative to canonical U1) would predict, and uncover an additional layer in stem cell identity regulation. Please read here: www.biorxiv.org/cgi/content/... Feedback more than welcome!
