Storm's open-access algorithm for RNA epigenetics; plus Duke studies show checkpoint blockers promote anti-HIV bNAbs and reduce opioid efficacy

Storm Therapeutics Ltd. and collaborators at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Tübingen have created a computational algorithm, Nucleic Acid Search Engine (NASE), that maps data from mass spectrometry of RNA to RNA sequence databases. Described in Nature Communications on Monday, NASE is an open-source search engine that enables high-throughput analysis of mass spectrometry data to identify the type of RNA epigenetic modifications that have occurred in the context of an RNA molecule's sequence. The paper reported proof-of-concept analyses of mass spectrometry datasets for four RNA sequences.

Duke University and the Children's Mercy Hospital researchers and colleagues showed combining checkpoint blockade with a vaccine could enhance the generation of protective antibody responses against HIV infection. Reported in a Nature Communications paper, which was published Wednesday, co-administration of a vaccine delivering HIV env plus an anti-CTLA-4 antibody elicited higher titers of neutralizing antibodies in cynomolgus macaques and mice than the vaccine alone. In mice engineered with the ability to produce broadly neutralizing antibodies (bNAbs) against HIV, the vaccine plus an OX40 agonist or an anti-CTLA-4 antibody incuded higher neutralizing antibody titers than the vaccine alone. ...