Isabella Maudlin

My current research extends upon my PhD research, where I explored the links between splicing and transcription in yeast in the lab of Prof. Jean Beggs at the University of Edinburgh. Before my PhD, I studied for a Master’s Degree at the University of Cambridge where I researched the regulation of gene expression in African trypanosomes.

To generate a functional protein, DNA must be copied into RNA by a process called transcription. Before RNA is translated to produce a functional protein, RNA must be processed in various ways that are important for its function and stability. The DNA of most organisms comprises a mixture of both non-coding sequences (‘introns’) and coding sequences (‘exons’). In order to make a functional protein, introns are removed in a complex biochemical process called splicing. Splicing is conserved from simple unicellular organisms such as yeasts to more complex multicellular organisms like humans, and failures in splicing can be detrimental to individual cells and whole organisms. From yeast to humans, splicing occurs during transcription (‘co-transcriptionally’) of DNA into RNA, and interestingly, it has been found that splicing and transcription can influence one another. These links between splicing and transcription are important for correct and efficient splicing to occur. My research studies how splicing is regulated co-transcriptionally, and if successful will fill in gaps in our understanding co-transcriptional splicing, which is a biological process essential for life.

Recent Publications

Maudlin IE and Beggs JD (2019). Spt5 regulates co-transcriptional spliceosome assembly in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. RNA. 10:1298-1310

Barrass JD, Mendoza-Ochoa GI, Maudlin IE, Sani E and Beggs JD (2019). Tuning Degradation to Achieve Specific and Efficient Protein Depletion. J Vis Exp. 149: e59874

Mendoza-Ochoa GI, Barrass JD, Maudlin IE and Beggs JD (2019). Blocking late stages of splicing quickly limits pre-spliceosome assembly in vivo. RNA Biol. 12: 1775-1784

Tellier M*, Maudlin IE* and Murphy S (2020). Transcription and splicing: A two-way street. Wiley Interdiscip Rev RNA. e1593