Best of CASE District I Award
 

Institution: Boston University

Title of entry: The Brink, "They Fell in Love with Each Other…"

About this entry: This is not your average research news article: “They Fell in Love with Each Other, Then with the Same Science” is a story about two scientists falling in love—with each other and an emerging science. Ruslan Afasizhev and Inna Afasizheva met as undergraduates at Moscow State University at a time when scientists across the globe were first discovering the complex relationship between DNA, RNA, and the rest of a cell’s machinery. They both became fascinated by the role RNA plays in translating genetic code—particularly the RNA of a single-celled, disease-causing parasite called Trypanosoma brucei. They’ve been studying how information flows from DNA to RNA in Trypanosoma for nearly three decades—while also building a life together outside of the lab. They left post-Soviet Russia to continue their research, and have gotten closer and closer to solving this complex puzzle while at Boston University. This article tells their story, while highlighting their latest findings, published in Science, which provide the most detailed look to date at RNA editing in Trypanosoma and could eventually help treat the deadly disease spread by the parasite.