Esra Ahunbay

A small polymerase ribozyme that can synthesize itself and its complementary strand The emergence of a chemical system capable of self-replication and evolution is a critical event in the origin of life. RNA polymerase ribozymes can replicate RNA, but their large size and structural ...

How could a simple self-replicating system emerge at the origins of life? RNA polymerase ribozymes can replicate RNA, but existing ones are so large that their self-replication seems impossible. Could they be smaller?

Excited to share our latest work in @science.org on a new small polymerase.
1/n

Biomimetic polarity reversal for lysine-targeted bioconjugation In this issue of Chem, Zhang and colleagues report a biomimetic polarity-reversal strategy for lysine-targeted bioconjugation. Leveraging ortho-quinone as an oxidant, this approach directly converts the ε-amino group of lysine to an aldehyde moiety under physiological conditions, enabling site-specific modification of peptides and proteins with unprecedented biocompatibility, chemoselectivity, and versatility.

Online now: Biomimetic polarity reversal for lysine-targeted bioconjugation

Discuss #RNA 3' ends and their regulation at the EMBO Workshop "RNA 3' ends and beyond" in #Oxford, United Kingdom, 7–11 September 2026.

Deadline: 4 May 2026

https://meetings.embo.org/event/26-rna3
#EMBORNA3EndsBeyond #RNAsky #LifeSciences #meeting #EMBOevents 🧪

The images shows an array of 6 Expansion microscopy images of cell nuclei (three columns and 2 rows). each image was taken with a different SPY-DNA probe to stain the nuclear DNA and is pseudocolored to the fluorescence wavelength of the SPY-DNA probe. Trom top left to bottom right: SPY505-DNA (green); SPY555-DNA (magenta); SPY595-DNA (yellow); SPY620-DNA (orange); SPY650-DNA (red); SPY700-DNA (darker red). a white scale bar of 50 micrometers is given for each image to get an impression of the scale of each nuclei.

Are you staining DNA in your ExM samples?

We have awesome news for you! All our 6 SPY-DNA probes work beautifully well with the U-ExM protocol.

You can now tune the color of the DNA channel to your needs, according to the fluorophores on your preferred antibodies.

spirochrome.com/products/?_c...

3' to 5' Translation of Circular RNAs? For decades, the 5' to 3' direction of translation has been a central dogma of molecular biology. Here we present evidence that eukaryotic circular RNAs (circRNAs) can serve as templates for 3' to 5' ...

I don't know about this...

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

Ayasofya’nın 'restorasyonu' 1990’lardan beri meselemiz Kültürel Miras ve Koruma: Kim İçin? Ne İçin?’de Asu Aksoy ve Burçin Altınsay, Ayasofya’da ağır tonajlı araç ve ekipman görüntülerinin yarattığı tepkinin ardından Bakanlığın açıkladığı “Mimar Sinan’dan...

Ayasofya’da ağır tonajlı araç ve ekipman görüntülerinin yarattığı tepkinin ardından Bakanlığın restorasyon açıklaması vesilesiyle, 1993'ten bugüne süren koruma çalışmalarını Prof. Dr. Zeynep Ahunbay'la konuştuk.

Kültürel Miras ve Koruma tüm podcast platformlarında ve web sitemizde, yayında.

Measuring cellular force using DNA-based tension probes: from ensemble to single-molecule studies Nature Protocols, Published online: 28 November 2025; doi:10.1038/s41596-025-01277-yThe authors present a protocol for the use of two advanced DNA-based tension probes, the reversible shearing DNA-based tension probe (RSDTP) and ForceChrono probe, which provide powerful tools for studying mechanotransduction in living cells.

New Article! Measuring cellular force using DNA-based tension probes: from ensemble to single-molecule studies

Site‐Selective RNA Modification by Programmable DNA‐Small Molecule Conjugates Programmable DNA–DMAP conjugates enable site-selective acylation of native RNAs via proximity-driven catalysis. This strategy allows programmable RNA modification at targeted 2′-OH positions using pe...

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.... @angewandtechemie.bsky.social

It’s a new term: here are 99 lab hacks Nature asked contributors, editors and working researchers to share their best advice for scientists.

As the new term begins, here are 99 lab hacks to make your working lives easier

go.nature.com/4pEZ6ZJ

Self-splicing RNA circularization facilitated by intact group I and II introns Nature Communications - RNA circularization is vital for circRNA therapeutics. Here, authors present two in vitro methods—PIET and CIRC—where CIRC employs intact self-splicing introns...

rdcu.be/eAbyi

Yeryüzünün güzel tanığı, kurdun kuşun ince ruhlu habercisi Gazete Oksijen

Yücelimizin ardından...
gazeteoksijen.com/turkiye/yery...

🖤🕊️

Single-molecule analysis reveals the mechanism of chromatin ubiquitylation by variant PRC1 complexes Single-molecule experiments show that active conformation formation controls chromatin ubiquitylation kinetics by variant PRC1.

Our new study of chromatin ubiquitylation by variant PRC1 on the single-molecule scale: We visualize directly how vPRC1 ubiquitylates neighboring nucleosomes during a single binding event, showing a potential mechanism how H2Aub domains are established.
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Plasma membrane labelling efficiency, internalization and partitioning of functionalized fluorescent lipids as a function of lipid structure Labeling the plasma membrane for advanced imaging remains a significant challenge. For time-lapse live cell imaging, probe internalization and photobleaching are major limitations affecting most membr...

New paper out! Would you like to fluorescently label the plasma membrane in live, fixed or permeabilized cells? I tested different lipid structures and labelling approaches to decide what makes a good membrane labelling probe for such imaging experiments!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

White smoke! 💨

(Got this graphic out just in time!)

Are you ready for the LNP revolution?

#RNAtherapeutics are transforming medicine, offering ways to silence disease-causing genes, express proteins, and modulate biological processes.

But #RNA is fragile. It's unstable, easily degraded, and struggles to enter cells.

The cover of the May issue with cover line "Biocomputing with trans-splicing"

Our May issue is live!

www.nature.com/nchembio/vol...

The cover image depicts a 3D model of an engineered group I intron set against a background of electronic circuits

Fluorescence Characterization of Extracellular Vesicles using Single-Molecule Confocal Microscopy https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.04.21.649767v1

few days left to join the GRC! (and 2 spots left for selected talks). Looking forward to discuss computational approaches in NMR with you in the beautiful mountains of Switzerland
#NMR

All back issues of CHIMIA are now available online. Check out our poster #sm25 @swisschemistry.bsky.social

I'd love to join the pack

I'd love to join, thank you!

First attempt in a (loosely defined) Single-Molecule Biophysics starter pack. Please share and (self-) nominate. go.bsky.app/CteFZM5

I'd like to join please