Predicting ZIKA virus RNA structure based on novel RNA-RNA interactomic data
The structural flexibility of RNA underlies fundamental biological processes, but there were no methods to explore the multiple conformations adopted by RNAs in vivo. We developed cross-linking of matched RNAs and deep sequencing (COMRADES) for in-depth RNA conformation capture, and a pipeline for the retrieval of RNA structural ensembles.
Using COMRADES, we determined the architecture of the Zika virus RNA genome inside cells and identified multiple site-specific interactions with human noncoding RNAs.