Ph.D. Defense Launches a New RNA Research Front at LBS
Defesa de Tese de Doutorado
Luana Luiza Bastos's Ph.D. defense marks a new research frontier at LBS, integrating RNA, Structural Bioinformatics, and Artificial Intelligence. The work resulted in RNApedia, a database containing more than 56,000 protein–RNA interactions, expanding opportunities for research and the development of AI models for the Life Sciences.
The Laboratory of Bioinformatics and Systems (LBS) proudly celebrates the Ph.D. defense of **Luana Luiza Bastos**, completed in the Interunit Graduate Program in Bioinformatics at UFMG. Her dissertation, entitled **"RNApedia: A Database of Protein–RNA Interactions,"** represents a significant milestone for the laboratory, establishing a new research direction focused on the integration of **RNA, Structural Bioinformatics, and Artificial Intelligence**.
The dissertation's main outcome is **RNApedia**, a curated database containing structural information on **56,133 protein–RNA pairs**. The resource includes interatomic contacts, physicochemical properties, molecular interfaces, binding affinity, RNA types, secondary structures, and other structural features relevant to applications in machine learning and artificial intelligence.
RNApedia expands LBS's research activities in Structural Bioinformatics and creates new opportunities for studies on molecular recognition, aptamers, nucleotide modifications, biomolecular interaction interfaces, and the development of advanced AI models for structural biology.
The dissertation was supervised by **Prof. Raquel Cardoso de Melo-Minardi** and co-supervised by **Dr. Diego Mariano**, and evaluated by a committee of distinguished national and international experts.
We congratulate **Dr. Luana Luiza Bastos** on this outstanding achievement and for her significant contribution to expanding the research frontiers of LBS. We look forward to the new scientific opportunities that RNApedia will provide to the bioinformatics community and to the advancement of Artificial Intelligence-driven technologies for the Life Sciences.