Kenneth J. Loi

The paper shows that VIPR systems in E. coli mediate competition between phages and their satellite counterparts, with satellites using decoy RNAs to counteract repression.

The paper identifies a bacterial immune pathway where tRNA cleavage generates second messengers that trigger cell death via RNA-guided nuclease activity.

The paper designs active RNA-guided nucleases using AI and structure-guided methods, validated by cryo-EM and functional testing across species.

The paper identifies VIPR systems, which use noncontiguous RNA codes for DNA recognition, suggesting an ancient origin of adaptive immunity through viral interactions.

The paper reveals the structural mechanism of VIPR RNA-guided DNA recognition through triplex formation, showing how noncontiguous RNA sequences direct DNA targeting.

The paper identifies recurrent acquisition of nuclease-protease pairs in bacterial antiviral immunity and shows their proteolytic activation mechanism across different immune systems.

The paper shows that the CRISPR-related enzyme mCpol produces cyclic oligonucleotides to prevent cell death and counteract viral immune evasion.

The paper traces the evolutionary origin of eukaryotic RNA-guided endonucleases, showing they evolved from a specific clade of bacterial IS607 TnpB enzymes.