LAB LOGA page on LabLog, a review site (not the lab's official page)
RNA Biofunction Lab
Machine-translated · View original
The lab investigates how noncoding RNAs build structures inside cells.
AboutAbout the lab
How noncoding RNAs shape the inside of the cell
The RNA Biofunction Lab studies the functions of noncoding RNAs that serve as the scaffold of intracellular structures, among the large numbers of noncoding RNAs produced from the human genome.
The lab discovered these RNAs and named them architectural RNAs (arcRNAs). Together with proteins, arcRNAs cause intracellular phase separation and lead the formation of membraneless organelles.
The lab investigates how proteins recognize arcRNA sequences, how arcRNAs function, and how to find new arcRNAs, through three research themes.
On the lab's website, it is introduced as a lab of the Graduate School of Frontier Biosciences, Osaka University.
Key terms
- Noncoding RNA
- RNA that does not carry protein-coding information. It has become clear that large amounts are produced from the human genome
- arcRNA
- Short for architectural RNA. A noncoding RNA that serves as the scaffold of an intracellular structure
- Intracellular phase separation
- A phenomenon in which RNAs and proteins gather inside a cell and form a droplet-like space. It is the basis of membraneless structures
- Membraneless organelle
- An intracellular structure that is not enclosed by a membrane. arcRNAs lead its formation by causing phase separation together with proteins
NewsLab news
A paper from the lab was published in Molecular Cell
A paper from the lab was published in RNA
A paper by a lab alumnus was published in RNA
Two lab members received the MBSJ-EMBO Poster Award 2025 at the Annual Meeting of the Molecular Biology Society of Japan
A review article by Prof. Hirose and colleagues was published in Trends in Genetics (featured on the cover)
ResearchResearch themes
Among the large numbers of noncoding RNAs produced from the human genome, the lab found those that act as the scaffold of intracellular structures and named them architectural RNAs (arcRNAs). Through three research themes, it aims to elucidate how arcRNAs, together with proteins, cause intracellular phase separation and lead the formation of membraneless organelles, and what biological functions this serves.
*Illustrative imageDeciphering the Code of Noncoding RNAs
Believing that, apart from the genetic code of proteins, there must be rules of function written into RNA sequences, the lab aims to decipher them using arcRNAs as a model. Using genome editing, super-resolution imaging, and other methods, it examines the sequences that proteins recognize and how phase separation takes place.
*Illustrative imageFunctional Analysis of Noncoding RNAs
The droplet space that arcRNAs create through phase separation works as a "crucible" that carries out specific reactions efficiently, a "sponge" that tethers factors from the outside, and a "hub" that serves as a structural origin point for chromatin. The lab studies this mechanism of action and the biological regulatory mechanisms it targets.
*Illustrative imageSearching for Noncoding RNAs
Focusing on the fact that arcRNAs are markedly difficult to extract with ordinary RNA extraction reagents, the lab aims to search for hard-to-extract RNAs by next-generation sequencing and identify new arcRNAs. It also aims to look for organelles that are sensitive to RNase treatment, and to compare the newly found arcRNAs to clarify the features they share.
MembersFaculty
The members of the RNA Biofunction Lab consist of faculty, JSPS Research Fellows (PD), doctoral, master's, and undergraduate students, Lotus program participants, and administrative assistants.As of 2026
- ProfessorTetsuro Hirose
- Associate ProfessorTomohiro Yamazaki
- LecturerKensuke Ninomiya
- Assistant ProfessorIchiro Taniguchi
- Assistant ProfessorKanako Kita
- Assistant ProfessorNaoko Fujiwara
VoicesStudent voices
Ratings and reviews reflect the experiences of individual current or former students, not the lab's official views. Whether a lab has reviews, or how many, says nothing about the lab itself.
Students who take part in an interview may receive a thank-you gift worth ¥1,000, regardless of what they say.
Student ratings (0 students)
--
--
--
--
--
--
Student voices answer questions like these
- What's great about this lab?
- What did you learn after joining?
- What's the vibe, and what is the professor like?
- Who is this lab for?
- Where do graduates go?
Your experience can help younger students choose their lab. Your name won't be shown.
Write a lab reviewAnonymous · Your draft is saved if you stopRelatedLabs similar to RNA Biofunction Lab
Single-Molecule Biology LabFaculty of Science, Department of Biological SciencesAdvancing single-molecule measurement, once difficult with a…
Genome-Chromosome Function LabFaculty of Science, Department of Biological SciencesHomologous recombination (DNA strand exchange) in genome sta…
Chromosome Structure and Function LabFaculty of Science, Department of Biological SciencesElucidating how epigenomic information such as DNA methylati…
Molecular Developmental Biology LabFaculty of Science, Department of Biological SciencesMolecular mechanisms of vertebrate central nervous system de…The information on this page is compiled by the LabLog team from the lab's public information and interviews. For corrections or removal requests, please contact LabLog, not the lab.
Report an errorAbout the images
The top and research theme images are illustrative and were not taken at the lab. They are cropped from Wikimedia Commons images. Cropped CC BY-SA images are provided under the same CC BY-SA license as the original (version shown on each line).
- Top image: “NEAT1 paraspeckles in U-2 OS cells” Aeffenberger / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Deciphering the Code of Noncoding RNAs: “OmrA-B RNA structure” Ppgardne / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Functional Analysis of Noncoding RNAs: “Nucleus of cardiac fibroblasts” Lorenzo2697 / CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
- Searching for Noncoding RNAs: “DNA Extraction of Bacteria” iris marie kelly / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Single-Molecule Biology Lab): “Fluorescence microscope” Sarathkumaran Ranganathan / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Genome-Chromosome Function Lab): “Independent assortment” Christinelmiller / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Chromosome Structure and Function Lab): “Human karyotype (248 27) Human karyotype” Doc. RNDr. Josef Reischig, CSc. / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Molecular Developmental Biology Lab): “Confocal Microscope” Mark from Edinburgh, United Kingdom / CC BY-SA 2.0 (cropped)
About LabLog
LabLog is a lab review app for students only. Student members at each university interview students in labs and publish what they say. Student voices can only be read by students who sign up with a university email address. Operated by bestiee Inc.
Learn more about LabLog ↗Search engines and AI may reference the basic lab info and rating summaries on this page and the description of LabLog. Student voices are for student members only. Automated collection by programs (scraping, or input to or training of AI) is prohibited under Article 8 of the Terms of Service. If you need data for research or analysis, please contact us.