RNA Biology

mRNA translation during development and disease

Translation, i.e., the decoding of a messenger RNA (mRNA) genetic information into a polypeptide, is one of the fundamental processes of life. Translational control during gene expression comprises a series of mechanisms crucial to define the composition of the proteome in all forms of life and disease. Moreover, many processes of development are a tightly regulated at the level of mRNA translation. Translation and translational control are an exciting, fast-moving field in which new techniques, databases, and the irruption of artificial intelligence are helping to discover novel regulatory elements of mRNAs, mechanisms and molecules involved in this process.

Recently, dysregulated translation has emerged as an important cause of many developmental phenotypes and diseases. Indeed, various translation factors are oncogenes, and some components of the translational machinery are mutated across different types of diseases. Malfunctioning of the cascades signaling to the translation apparatus is also a major source of organismal disorders.

We dedicate this Article Collection to discussing the state-of-the-art of key aspects of mRNA translation in development and diseases. This includes mRNA regulatory elements, the activity of translation factors, regulation of the signaling cascades regulating translation, and therapeutic strategies based on pharmacological compounds targeting translation. Other topics are the new methodologies based on genome-wide, big-data analyses and artificial intelligence-based research.

Keywords:

1. Translation factors
2. Translational control
3. Translation and development
4. Translation and disease
5. Methodologies on translation

Guest Advisor

Prof. Greco Hernández received his Major in Biology at the National University of Mexico (UNAM) in 1992. He obtained a PhD in Molecular Biology at the University of Madrid (UAM) in 1999. Then, he moved for 6 years as a postdoctoral fellow in the Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry in Göttingen, Germany. Afterward, he got a 2-years postdoctoral position in the University of Bern, Switzerland. Then, he became Research Associate for 6 years at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. Since 2011, he became Professor and Principal Investigator at the National Institute of Cancer, in Mexico, and Professor at the Autonomous National University of Mexico (UNAM). In 2024-2026 he also became Professor-Researcher at the Tecnológico de Monterrey, Mexico.
His lab is interested elucidating the molecular mechanisms of protein synthesis in cancer, and the development of mRNA as a therapeutic molecule. He is author or co-author of 60 publications in international peer-reviewed journals, with a focus on mRNA translation in Drosophila development, cancer, and the evolution of the protein synthesis apparatus in eukaryotes.

For more details about Prof. Hernández's work, please visit https://sites.google.com/cancerologiainvest.com/mrna-and-cancer-lab?pli=1 or http://www.incan.salud.gob.mx/direccion-investigacion/investigacion-basica#laboratorio-del-rnam

Disclosure Statement: Guest Advisor declares no conflict of interest regarding this work.

All manuscripts submitted to this Article Collection will undergo a full peer-review. Please review the journal scope and author submission instructions prior to submitting a manuscript.

To submit your papers to this Article Collection, please:

1. Check "yes" for the question, "Are you submitting your paper for a specific special issue or article collection?"
2. Select the Article Collection ‘mRNA translation during development and disease’ from the drop-down menu under the question, "Special Issue or Article Collection Name."

Please contact Changluan Zhou at changluan.zhou@taylorandfrancis.com with any queries and discount codes regarding this Article Collection.