Anne
Condon
University
of
British
Columbia
Computational
Challenges
and
Opportunities
in
RNA
Secondary
Structure
Prediction
Abstract: DNA
and
RNA
molecules
have
proven
to
be
very
versatile
materials.
Structures
formed
by
RNA
molecules
play
important
regulatory
and
catalytic
roles
in
the
cell,
and
show
promise
in
therapeutics.
Molecular
engineers
can
now
design
and
realize
nano-scale
structures
and
sensors,
and
even
simple
machines
with
moving
parts,
built
from
DNA.
Function
follows
form
in
the
molecular
world,
and
so
our
ability
to
understand
nucleic
acid
function
in
the
cell,
as
well
as
to
design
novel
structures,
is
enhanced
by
reliable
means
for
structure
prediction.
Computational work on RNA structure prediction has focused on secondary structure — the set of base pairs that form when the molecule folds on itself. Algorithms which predict RNA and DNA secondary structure from the base sequence typically rely on models of the physical (thermodynamic) aspects of molecular folding. In this talk, we will describe some algorithmic and inference problems that arise in DNA/RNA secondary structure prediction from the base sequence, progress in solving these problems, and directions for future research. No prior biological background will be assumed for the talk.
Biography: Anne Condon is a Professor of Computer Science at the University of British Columbia and Associate Dean in the Faculty of Science. Much of her current research focuses on computational prediction of nucleic acid structure, with applications to design of novel structures and gene synthesis. Her research contributions span computational complexity theory, hardware verification, biomolecular computation, and combinatorial auctions.
She has received an ACM Distinguished Dissertation Award, NSF National Young Investigator Award, and University College Cork Distinguished Alumna Award for her work, and currently holds the NSERC/GM Canada Chair. Anne received her BSc degree (1982) from University College Cork, Ireland and PhD (1987) from the University of Washington. Prior to her position at UBC, she was a faculty member at University of Wisconsin from 1987–1999.
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