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Empowering drug innovation through fundamental RNA research in China

Nature Chemical Biology (2026)Cite this article

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This Comment discusses how an integrative cross-disciplinary research program in China aims to link RNA biology with translational drug discovery to accelerate RNA innovation and contribute to a global shift toward rational, RNA-centered therapeutics.

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Fig. 1: Challenges and strategic prescriptions for advancing RNA-based drug development.
Fig. 2: Two RNA-focused Major Research Plans led by NSFC.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant no. 92481001). We are grateful to X. Fu, P. Wang and S. Li for insightful suggestions, and to L.-J. Sun for assistance with figure preparation.

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Author notes

  1. These authors contributed equally: Quansheng Du, Xin Wang, Yangming Wang.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Interdisciplinary Sciences, National Natural Science Foundation of China, Beijing, China

    Quansheng Du

  2. Key Laboratory of Systems Health Science of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Science, Hangzhou Institute for Advanced Study, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, China

    Xin Wang & Mo-Fang Liu

  3. State Key Laboratory of Gene Function and Modulation Research, Institute of Molecular Medicine, College of Future Technology, Beijing Advanced Center of RNA Biology (BEACON), Peking University, Beijing, China

    Yangming Wang

  4. Southwest United Graduate School, Kunming, China

    Yangming Wang

  5. New Cornerstone Science Laboratory, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Maternal Fetal Medicine, Clinical and Translational Research Center of Shanghai First Maternity and Infant Hospital, Shanghai Institute of Maternal Fetal Medicine and Gynecologic Oncology, Frontier Science Center for Stem Cell Research, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Signaling and Disease Research, School of Life Sciences and Technology, Tongji University, Shanghai, China

    Mo-Fang Liu

  6. Sycamore Research Institute of Life Sciences, Shanghai, China

    Mo-Fang Liu

  7. State Key Laboratory of Plant Genomics and National Center for Plant Gene Research, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China

    Xiaofeng Cao

Authors
  1. Quansheng Du
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  2. Xin Wang
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  3. Yangming Wang
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  4. Mo-Fang Liu
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  5. Xiaofeng Cao
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Quansheng Du, Mo-Fang Liu or Xiaofeng Cao.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Du, Q., Wang, X., Wang, Y. et al. Empowering drug innovation through fundamental RNA research in China. Nat Chem Biol (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41589-026-02173-6

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