Welcome to the Van Bortle Lab

Our group combines genomic, molecular, and biochemical approaches to investigate RNA polymerase III (Pol III) transcription dynamics, regulation, and function. We are probing the full extent of Pol III transcription, its tissue- and context-specific activities, and the regulatory factors and processes that modulate Pol III activity. We are also pursuing the functional activities and consequences of tissue-specific and cancer-associated small ncRNAs derived from Pol III transcription, with the overarching goal of understanding how Pol III contributes to changes in cell state, such as cell growth, differentiation, metabolism, and environmental responses. 

Research

Our genes are expressed by three DNA-dependent RNA polymerase machineries. RNA polymerase III (Pol III) is unique in that it exclusively transcribes genes encoding small noncoding RNA (ncRNA). The Pol III transcriptome includes diverse ncRNAs central to many cellular processes, including transcription (7SK), translation (tRNA, 5S rRNA, 7SL), splicing and RNA processing (U6;U6atac, H1, RMRP), and additional ncRNAs that intersect a variety of other processes (e.g. Vault and autophagy). 

At UIUC, we leverage large-scale genomic analyses and other approaches to survey Pol III signatures beyond its established transcriptome, to discover new forms and mechanisms of dynamic Pol III regulation, and to deconstruct the downstream molecular functions and consequences of cancer-associated ncRNAs. 

Our work is supported by the University of Illinois and 

funding from the National Human Genome Research Institute

Lab Members

|| Ruiying Cheng (graduate student, Cell & Developmental Biology) 

|| Divya Choudhary (undergrad., Molecular and Cellular Biology)

|| Rajendra K C (graduate student, Center for Biophysics & Quant. Bio.)

|| Simon Lizarazo (graduate student, Molecular & Integrative Phys.) 

|| Leela Mouli (undergrad., Molecular and Cellular Biology)

|| Reid Walters (masters student., MCB, research assistant)

|| Kristy Wang (undergrad., Nutrition and Health)  

|| Junmeng Yuan (undergrad., Molecular and Cellular Biology)

|| Sihang Zhou (graduate student, Cell & Developmental Biology) 

Previous Lab Members

|| David Chondroski (undergrad., Computer Science) 

|| Grace (Bingting) He (undergrad., SIB, research assistant) 

|| Jamie Im (undergrad., Chemistry) 

|| Anshita Jayanth (undergrad., Molecular and Cellular Biology) 

|| Marco Penaherrera (undergrad., visiting scholar Univ. San Francisco de Quito)