Laurence D. Hurst

Splice-Aware Optimization Prevents Pervasive Missplicing of Natural and Synthetic cDNAs

The paper identifies missplicing as a common issue in heterologous gene expression and develops a splice-aware optimization algorithm to improve transgene performance.

Endogenous retroviral elements LTR8B and MER65 rewire PSG9regulation to control trophoblast syncytialization and pre-eclampsia risk

The paper identifies retroviral elements LTR8B and MER65 that regulate PSG9 expression, influencing trophoblast syncytialization and pre-eclampsia risk.

Male germline vulnerability to DNA damage causes sex-biased mutation

The paper tests the damage-induced hypothesis of male mutation bias by comparing mutation rates in male and female mice exposed to mutagens, finding higher mutation accumulation in males.

Widespread allele-specific topological domains in the human genome are not confined to imprinted gene clusters.

The paper introduces HiCFlow to analyze allele-specific chromatin conformation and identifies allele-specific TADs (ASTADs) beyond imprinted gene clusters.

PiggyBac Transposable Element-derived 1 controls Neuronal Progenitor Identity, Stress Sensing and mammal-specific paraspeckles

The paper investigates PGBD1's role in neuronal progenitor identity, stress sensing, and mammal-specific paraspeckles, showing its dual function in DNA binding and protein interaction.

The selection arena in early human blastocysts resolves the pluripotent inner cell mass

The paper reanalyzes single-cell transcriptomic data and in situ stains to reveal the presence of a transcriptomically homologous inner cell mass in human blastocysts, highlighting unique developmental and evolutionary features.

Splicing buffers suboptimal codon usage in human cells

The paper shows splicing enhances expression of AT-rich genes by increasing mRNA stability and cytoplasmic localization, while GC-rich genes are less affected by splicing.