{"title":"Beyond sequence: a half-life × localization framework for lncRNAs.","authors":"Hidenori Tani","doi":"10.1016/j.tibs.2026.10.004","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tibs.2026.10.004","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Why do long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) with similar sequences behave differently across cell types and stimuli? This opinion article argues that reading half-life together with subcellular localization provides a practical organizing dimension for lncRNA function, one that helps make sense of the context-dependent, stimulus-responsive, and tissue-specific behaviors that sequence and structure alone leave unexplained. Drawing on transcriptome-wide turnover data from RNA sequencing and related metabolic-labeling approaches, I propose a half-life × localization matrix that groups lncRNAs into four functional categories, ranging from short-lived nuclear timing encoders to long-lived cytoplasmic buffers. Representative lncRNAs illustrate these categories; several shift between categories under stimulus, with the turnover change itself serving as the regulatory output. The matrix is a lens, not a final taxonomy.</p>","PeriodicalId":440,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Biochemical Sciences","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":14.4,"publicationDate":"2026-11-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149331996","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Trends at 50: a mission that matters.","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.tibs.2026.10.008","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tibs.2026.10.008","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":440,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Biochemical Sciences","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":14.4,"publicationDate":"2026-11-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149316919","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Lars Schuhmacher, Alexander Landmark, Reinhard Fischer
{"title":"Multisensing photoreceptors: a cross-kingdom perspective.","authors":"Lars Schuhmacher, Alexander Landmark, Reinhard Fischer","doi":"10.1016/j.tibs.2026.10.003","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tibs.2026.10.003","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Photoreceptors are classically depicted as monochromatic switches governed strictly by light. However, emerging biophysical and structural insights reveal that these proteins act as dynamic, multisensory hubs across kingdoms of life. Drawing primarily on plant and fungal systems, where mechanisms are most extensively characterized, this review synthesizes how photoreceptors integrate ambient temperature and cellular oxidative state alongside photon flux, with cross-kingdom examples extending this framework to bacteria. Thermal energy modulates dark reversion rates, quaternary assembly, and photobody phase separation, whereas reactive oxygen species alter the photocycle and trigger structural shifts through direct redox sensing. Under a 'stress-first' evolutionary model, ancestral stress-sensing scaffolds could be retrofitted with chromophores via exaptation, providing a unified biophysical rationale for how cells decode complex, fluctuating environments.</p>","PeriodicalId":440,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Biochemical Sciences","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":14.4,"publicationDate":"2026-11-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149316918","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Advisory Board and Contents","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/S0968-0004(26)00333-6","DOIUrl":"10.1016/S0968-0004(26)00333-6","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":440,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Biochemical Sciences","volume":"51 11","pages":"Pages i-ii"},"PeriodicalIF":14.4,"publicationDate":"2026-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149330672","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Ugne Gaizauskaite, Inga Songailiene, Giedrius Sasnauskas, Virginijus Siksnys
{"title":"Building CRISPR immunity: evolution and mechanisms of spacer acquisition","authors":"Ugne Gaizauskaite, Inga Songailiene, Giedrius Sasnauskas, Virginijus Siksnys","doi":"10.1016/j.tibs.2026.08.004","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tibs.2026.08.004","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>CRISPR–Cas systems in prokaryotes serve as adaptive immune systems that neutralize phage infections through RNA-guided nucleases. Immunization is achieved during the adaptation stage through Cas1–Cas2 integrase-mediated insertion of short foreign DNA snippets, termed spacers, into a CRISPR array in the host genome. This review examines the evolutionary origins of Cas1–Cas2 and the mechanisms of spacer acquisition in DNA-targeting CRISPR–Cas systems. Particular emphasis is placed on the recently characterized effector-assisted adaptation pathways, in which CRISPR effector proteins, such as Cascade and Cas9, typically involved in target interference, are repurposed for prespacer capture and integration into a CRISPR array.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":440,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Biochemical Sciences","volume":"51 11","pages":"Pages 1168-1183"},"PeriodicalIF":14.4,"publicationDate":"2026-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148885788","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"SNOR: a path for ribosome recovery after hibernation","authors":"Brenna A. Saladin, Jailson Brito Querido","doi":"10.1016/j.tibs.2026.08.009","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tibs.2026.08.009","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Cellular dormancy requires ribosomes to be reversibly silenced yet preserved. <span><span>Gluc <em>et al</em></span><svg><path></path></svg></span>. identify Shwachman–Bodian–Diamond syndrome domain-containing hibernation factor (SNOR), a fission yeast hibernation factor induced specifically by perturbed glucose homeostasis. Rather than driving translational shutdown, SNOR maintains dormant ribosomes in a state competent for rapid reactivation.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":440,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Biochemical Sciences","volume":"51 11","pages":"Pages 1097-1099"},"PeriodicalIF":14.4,"publicationDate":"2026-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148966175","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The diversity of terminal electron acceptors across eukaryotes","authors":"Ayush D. Midha, Isha H. Jain","doi":"10.1016/j.tibs.2026.07.009","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tibs.2026.07.009","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The flow of electrons is essential for life. To sustain metabolic flux, organisms efficiently transfer electrons to terminal electron acceptors, which range from inorganic nutrients to intracellularly derived organic metabolites. While the rise of atmospheric oxygen favored the expansion of high-yield aerobic respiration, the diversity of anaerobic electron acceptors remains important for organismal and ecological health, particularly in response to fluctuations in nutrient availability. This review summarizes respiratory and fermentative electron acceptors across eukaryotes, focusing on the evolution of anaerobic pathways. We highlight how ancient metabolic strategies have been conserved and modified to support organisms’ adaptation to diverse environmental niches and to sustain biological resilience.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":440,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Biochemical Sciences","volume":"51 11","pages":"Pages 1126-1139"},"PeriodicalIF":14.4,"publicationDate":"2026-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13591958/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148885830","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Valentina Blanco, Mauricio Castellano, Juan Pablo Tosar
{"title":"Cell-free RNA fragmentomics: rethinking the biology of RNA liquid biopsies","authors":"Valentina Blanco, Mauricio Castellano, Juan Pablo Tosar","doi":"10.1016/j.tibs.2026.09.007","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tibs.2026.09.007","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Cell-free RNA (cfRNA) is emerging as a promising analyte for liquid biopsy because it captures dynamic changes in gene expression across tissues and disease states. However, interpretation of cfRNA profiles remains limited by the lack of a unifying framework describing how extracellular RNAs are released, processed, and stabilized. Here, we propose that concepts from cell-free DNA fragmentomics provide a useful lens to interpret cfRNA biology and introduce the concept of cfRNA fragmentomics. We argue that many cfRNAs originate as intracellular ribonucleoprotein complexes that undergo extracellular ribonuclease processing, generating stable fragmented RNAs associated with proteins and other carriers. Under this framework, informative cfRNA signatures may arise not only from diseased tissues but also from indirect systemic responses to disease.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":440,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Biochemical Sciences","volume":"51 11","pages":"Pages 1116-1125"},"PeriodicalIF":14.4,"publicationDate":"2026-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149102341","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
John S. Allingham, Benjamin H. Kwok, Hernando Sosa
{"title":"Kinesins as dynamic drug targets: structural insights and emerging therapeutic strategies","authors":"John S. Allingham, Benjamin H. Kwok, Hernando Sosa","doi":"10.1016/j.tibs.2026.09.002","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tibs.2026.09.002","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Kinesins are essential for intracellular organization and cell division, and their involvement in disease has generated interest in their therapeutic potential. However, pharmacological studies have focused on a limited subset of kinesins and have mainly targeted the conserved motor domain. Advances in cryogenic electron microscopy and artificial intelligence-based structure prediction are revealing new opportunities for selective modulation. These approaches show that specific kinesin families may be inhibited by targeting conformational states induced by nucleotide and microtubule binding. They have also identified regulatory sites outside the motor domain, including stalk and tail interfaces that control autoinhibition, cargo binding, and localization. These insights redefine kinesins as dynamic, multidomain machines and highlight opportunities for selective, mechanism-guided therapeutic strategies.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":440,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Biochemical Sciences","volume":"51 11","pages":"Pages 1155-1167"},"PeriodicalIF":14.4,"publicationDate":"2026-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149023558","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Subscription and Copyright Information","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/S0968-0004(26)00336-1","DOIUrl":"10.1016/S0968-0004(26)00336-1","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":440,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Biochemical Sciences","volume":"51 11","pages":"Page e1"},"PeriodicalIF":14.4,"publicationDate":"2026-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149330673","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}