Structured outlook

A Cell study capturing hundreds of E. coli mRNA structures makes the case that complex, functionally relevant RNA structures are the rule, not the exception, and builds confidence that mRNAs -- once widely considered undruggable -- could furnish a broad reservoir of new targets. The question is whether the study’s findings will extend to mammalian cells.

For years, the prevailing assumption was that the only key information in mRNA lies in its primary structure -- the linear sequence that dictates the proteins it encodes; the three-dimensional structures of mRNAs were not thought to be important for their functional roles...