A team of researchers from the University of Padua has discovered the presence of i-Motifs (iMs) structures in human cells capable of controlling the expression of cellular genes. The results of the study, published in Nucleic Acid Research, lay the groundwork for new therapeutic targets for cancer, infectious and neurodegenerative diseases.

“In our work we have highlighted how the presence of iMs and G-quadruplexes (G4s) is an intrinsic feature of every cell lineage and therefore how these structures control important cellular functions,” explain Irene Zanin and Emanuela Ruggiero, from the Department of Molecular Medicine at the University of Padua and first authors of the study.

”Given their involvement in key roles in cell biology, iMs and G4s represent new therapeutic targets for several relevant human pathologies, such as cancer, infectious and neurodegenerative diseases.