2023 Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences: Breaking the DNA code
Speaker: Ms. R S Shravani
Genetic material such as DNA and RnA are the key molecules of life. They ensure the continuity of life by storing and relaying information that is necessary for a cell to survive and function. Just as we use language to communicate information, genetic material has its own language made up of nucleotides forming a 3-letter code called "codons". Considering the large amount of data stored in these microscopic molecules, is it possible for us to read this code? What are the methods to efficiently scan through the coded letters to analyze the deviations that gives special characteristics or help differentiate cells? Can we use any methods to artificially introduce messengers to edit this code, and maybe change its function, particularly in diseased conditions? In this Chai and Why? session, we'll address some of these questions! We'll try to understand how different techniques such as next generation sequencing have been developed to precisely read the code of nucleic acids. Can understanding this code break our boundaries in treating different disease conditions in the form of mRNA therapeutics? Join us to find out, in this special session celebrating the 2023 Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences.
About the speaker: Ms. R S Shravani is a Research Scholar at the Dept. of Biological Sciences, TIFR.