Grant for investigating the molecular mechanisms of cellular quiescence
20 08 2025
Dr. Eng. Lidia Lipińska-Zubrycka from the Faculty of Biology at the University of Warsaw has received a grant from the National Science Centre (NCN) under the SONATA 20 competition for the project entitled “Molecular Mechanisms of Cellular Quiescence: The Role of Uridylation and RNA Metabolism.”
The project will be conducted at the Institute of Genetics and Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Warsaw, and focuses on elucidating the molecular mechanisms that regulate cellular quiescence—a deeply conserved, reversible, non-dividing state of cells, also referred to as the G0 phase. This state plays a crucial role in multiple biological processes, including stem cell maintenance, oocyte maturation, tissue regeneration, and the response to environmental stress. Despite its fundamental importance, the molecular basis of quiescence—particularly regarding RNA metabolism—remains poorly understood.
The research will employ Schizosaccharomyces pombe as a model organism and will involve advanced molecular biology and bioinformatics approaches. This pioneering project aims to identify novel genetic factors responsible for cell survival in the G0 phase and to improve our understanding of transcriptome regulation under conditions of limited metabolic activity. Due to the high degree of conservation of the studied processes, the findings may also be relevant to research on human cells, including stem and cancer cells.
Further details are available on the Faculty of Biology website: