Structure and topology of RNA in living systems (EUTOPIA WORKSHOP)

RNA is an incredibly versatile biological macromolecule whose function is carried out not only
on the level of its primary sequence of nucleotides, but also by the local and global structures
that are created when the constituent nucleotides form base pairs. Many RNA structures are
thus involved in translational control, RNA localization, gene regulation, RNA stability, and more.
Furthermore, in a large number of bacterial, plant, animal, and human viruses, positive-strand
RNA takes on the role of their genomes. Far from simply coding for the protein products, both
local structural elements as well as long-range structural interactions in the genomes of RNA
viruses are involved in many fundamental viral processes such as virus disassembly,
translation, genome replication, and packaging, and are thus in general important for viral
fitness.
The aim of the workshop is to bring together researchers working on various aspects of RNA
structure, topology, and function from both theoretical and experimental point of view, with a
special focus on the genomes of RNA viruses.

Main topics:

• RNA structure and topology
• RNA viruses
• RNA bioinformatics