Granada scientists develop software for the analysis of RNA, key molecules in multiple diseases – Europa Press

GRANADA, Jul 19. (EUROPA PRESS) – A multidisciplinary group from the Biosanitary Research Institute of Granada, which includes researchers from the Faculty of Sciences and Medicine of the University of Granada, in collaboration with several international groups from the Netherlands and Norway, has published the latest version of the ‘sRNAbench’ software, one of the leading programs in the analysis of microRNA massive sequencing data. These are small RNAs that are very important for the regulation of gene expression and cell behavior that are present both inside cells and in different biofluids such as blood, urine or cerebrospinal fluid. They are usually released by cells freely or inside extracellular vesicles, and their deregulation has been associated with different types of cancer and autoimmune diseases. For this reason, they have great potential as biomarkers of these pathologies, and in recent years the number of sequencing of these molecules has increased considerably. This latest version of the ‘sRNAbench’ software has been optimized for ease of use by inexperienced users, as well as allowing the analysis of large numbers of samples simultaneously, which is expected to reach a greater number of researchers. This study shows an example of application with patients with bronchiectasis, a disease that produces an abnormal and irreversible dilation of the bronchial tree and that can be aggravated when an infection by the bacterium Pseudomonas aureginosa occurs. Thanks to the new functionalities incorporated in this new version of ‘sRNAbench’, it is possible to detect the presence of this bacterium in samples from infected patients who presented symptoms, even with a negative culture. The development of this new version of the software by these scientists from Granada facilitates the work of all researchers in the field of miRNAs, a field with application to many biomedical aspects and with great potential for clinical translation. This work has been developed by the research group ‘Advanced Therapies: differentiation, regeneration and cancer’ of the ibs. GRANADA, led by Juan Antonio Marchal Corrales and which focuses its research on two main axes: regenerative medicine and experimental oncology, from a translational and interdisciplinary perspective, with application in diagnosis and therapeutic use to benefit the health of patients with diseases of high prevalence, such as degenerative diseases and cancer.