Biochemistry Seminar: Victoria D’Souza, “Alternate structures in RNA and their functional significance”

Event details Date: Wednesday, October 14, 2026 Time: 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM Campus: The City College of New York Type: Lectures About this event Victoria D'Souza, Professor of Molecular and Cellular Biology at Harvard University, will give a talk on " Alternate structures in RNA and their functional significance ." This seminar will also be available by Zoom. Zoom link: https://gc-cuny.zoom.us/j/96975997619?pwd=C4JXA4s7H3L4sgnmmpWmoHdCunxLbe.1 Meeting ID: 969 7599 7619. Passcode: asrc**ccny Please note : * Full names must be used to be admitted to the Zoom meeting. * The Zoom meeting will be closed and locked at 12:15 p.m., and no one will be able to enter the meeting after that time. ABSTRACT Viral RNA genomes are not merely passive carriers of genetic information; they also contain structured domains that actively regulate key steps in the viral life cycle. In this seminar, I will focus on two such domains in HIV: one that regulates the initiation of reverse transcription and another that directs translational frameshifting. In both cases, I will highlight the functional importance of minor alternative RNA conformations and present findings that challenge fundamental assumptions about these processes. First, I will show that reverse transcriptase (RT) functions not only as an enzyme but also as an RNA structural remodeler. I will discuss how this distinct activity regulates the initiation of DNA synthesis within virions. Second, I will describe a pseudoknotted RNA structure that, although present as a minor conformational population, functions as the frameshifting signal required to maintain the precise protein ratio essential for HIV replication. Date: October 14, 2026 Time: 12:00 PM — 1:00 PM College: The City College of New York Address: 85 St Nicholas Terrace New York, NY 10031, Manhattan Building: ASRC Main Auditorium Phone: 212-650-8803 Admission: Free. Refreshments will be available in the ASRC Cafe at 11:30 AM. Website: https://gc-cuny.zoom.us/j/96975997619?pwd=C4JXA4s7H3L4sgnmmpWmoHdCunxLbe.1 Official event details: https://events.cuny.edu/cec/biochemistry-seminar-victoria-dsouza-alternate-structures-in-rna-and-their-functional-significance/