GlycoRNA: another 'hiding in plain sight' discovery

[Wishful]

https://newatlas.com/biology/glycorna-new-biomolecule-class-all-life/

"Exactly what glycoRNAs do in the body remains unknown, but scientists plan to investigate further. The team has a suspicion that they may be involved in autoimmune diseases, since some of the RNAs that are becoming glycosated are known targets for the immune system in patients with lupus. Further studies could open up new potential treatment opportunities."

In the past few years, they'd discovered (or rediscovered) previously unknown organs in the body. Here's a potentially important molecule that no one had even considered looking for as part of ME. Might the core cause of ME be one of these things that no one knows to even consider?

I haven't heard anything new from the 'something in the blood' search. I'm pretty sure glycoRNA wasn't on their search list.

 

[Pyrrhus]

In the article they interview Stanford professor Carolyn Bertozzi.

Funny anecdote about Carolyn Bertozzi:

When I was a PhD student at Berkeley, I had a class with Bertozzi. After class I was chatting with her about the things people are taught in school that they never end up needing in real life. She mentioned "Yeah, the first thing that chemistry students are taught are how to balance chemical equations. In my entire professional career, I've never had to balance a chemical equation!"

 

[Wishful]

In my entire professional career, I've never had to balance a chemical equation!"

I wonder what percentage of chemists actually do balance equations more often than 'just occasionally if at all'. There's probably only a small percentage that do it regularly.

That being said, students can't get to the 'doing complex chemistry without needing to do those basic calculations' stage without understanding the basics first.

 

[Pyrrhus]

Funny anecdote about Carolyn Bertozzi:

When I was a PhD student at Berkeley, I had a class with Bertozzi. After class I was chatting with her about the things people are taught in school that they never end up needing in real life. She mentioned "Yeah, the first thing that chemistry students are taught are how to balance chemical equations. In my entire professional career, I've never had to balance a chemical equation!"

Bertozzi just won the Nobel prize in chemistry.

Hear that, chemistry students?

You won't have to balance any chemical equations in order to win the Nobel Prize in chemistry!

 

[Alvin2]

I missed this thread until now
GlycoRNA is very interesting. And the fact that its already known to interact with one autoimmune condition is encouraging to know.

When i have heard some of the Rube Goldbergian theories of ME/CFS i keep thinking that they are only seeing something downstream, it reminds me of the cascading theories of Narcolepsy. None worked that great and they could see things were off in the body but a unified theory just could not be made. Most diseases have a simple abnormality. They may cause many downstream effects but there is a single malfunction starting the process. Then an unknown brain molecule was discovered and finally a theory of what Narcolepsy is become plausible.

I suspect ME/CFS is similar in that something will be found that is a single, simple issue. Everything downstream will then make sense. And then targeted treatment becomes possible.

Is GlycoRNA that abnormality. I have no idea but i hope research into it continues.