The Laboratory for RNA-Based Lifeforms (RNAlab) @ University of Toronto is a combined Computational and Molecular research team. Our passion is in understanding the interplay between RNA elements and Genetics. The primary domain where we interrogate this question is through the exploration of the vast evolution and biodiversity of Earth’s RNA viruses.
Our Work
Building The Foundations for Planetary-Scale Genomics
The growth of DNA and RNA sequencing data is staggering, outpacing Moore’s Law. Public databases now hold 120+ petabytes of raw sequencing data from more than 30 million samples, and this amount doubles every 24 months. Samples span from experimental cancer cells in a lab at the University of Toronto to anal swabs of wild penguins in Antarctica, and everything in between. Beyond their intended purpose, these data also hold genetic sequences from viruses and other genetic parasites in the samples. Yet they remain unanalyzed.
Our mission is to illuminate the epic diversity of infectious agents on Earth. To accomplish this we are developing computational techniques that not only enable a new era of petabase-scale genomics but also help scientists grok how genetic parasites interconnect life across our planet. Beyond merely discovering fringe virus and virus-like entities, we pursue understanding how these elements impact biology and health. For example, is there a viral cause for diseases of unknown etiology such as Alzheimer’s Disease, Crohn’s Disease, endometriosis, or cancer?
Cool & Recent Stuff
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Logan: Planetary-Scale Genome Assembly Surveys Life’s Diversity (preprint). Creation of the world’s largest genetic sequence assemblage from all 27 million public sequencing datasets. This 2.2 million vCPU compute has enabled pan-SRA search in as little as 12 hours, and brings us one step closer to a fully searchable planetary genetic database.
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Viroid-like colonists of human microbiomes (Cell). Discovery of a new RNA-based lifeform, the Obelisks. These new entities are found all across the world, including half of human mouth microbiomes.
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A parasite odyssey: An RNA virus concealed in Toxoplasma gondii (Virus Evolution). Upto half the world will be infected by the parasite T. gondii. We discover a trojan horse virus hiding inside the parasite, and show that the virus may trigger immune pathology in the mammalian host.