Yue Wan’s newest research on dengue and Zika viruses gets coverage from The Straits Times

Singapore’s leading newspaper The Straits Times reports on Branco Weiss Fellow Yue Wan’s newest research on the genetic structure of dengue and Zika viruses. The work presented recently in a paper published in Nature Communications is a crucial milestone in the development of treatments for the potentially deadly diseases. Dengue and Zika viruses are both spread by the Aedes mosquito. Today there are no effective treatments for either disease. The research focuses on understanding the genetic materials and shapes of these viruses, as well as their corresponding functions. Consequently, understanding their biology enables scientists to design better drugs and treatments.

The newspaper quotes Dr. Wan explaining the meaning of her research: “One needs to understand the shape and mechanism of a lock, in order to design a key that can open it. Similarly, mapping the shapes and structures of the dengue and Zika viruses will boost understanding of their biology, and contribute significantly towards designing drug treatments targeted at these viruses.”

Dr. Yue Wan’s research is centered on applying genome-wide RNA structure probing techniques to study RNA based gene regulation in pathogenic microorganisms. She aims to identify novel targetable RNA elements for the development of new antibiotics.

Read the news on the Straits Times website

Read the press release

Read the paper on the Nature Communications website