Information

Related Research Units

Genetics and Genomics Research
Myong Lab Research
PCMM Research

Research Overview

The primary focus of her research involves developing and applying single molecule approaches to acquire quantitative understanding of biology and to find ways to improve human medicine. The current directions of her research include:

  1. Investigations of G-quadruplex mediated gene expression supported by the NIGMS
  2. Telomere regulation with focus on the alternative lengthening of telomere promoted by oxidative damage supported by the NCI
  3. Molecular mechanism underlying liquid-liquid phase separation implicated in neurodegenerative diseases, ALS/FTLD supported by the NINDS
  4. regulation of poly (ADP-ribose) in RNA binding proteins and stress granule assembly supported by the NIA.

Research Background

Dr. Myong received her Ph.D. from University of California, Berkeley with Barry Shane and she did her postdoctoral work at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with Taekjip Ha. She began her independent position as an Assistant Professor in the Bioengineering department at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 2009. She moved to Johns Hopkins University, Biophysics department as an Associate Professor in 2015 and became a full professor in 2022.

Dr. Myong is a recipient of Scaringe Award (2005), Genome Technology’s annual list of Tomorrow’s PIs (2009), American Cancer Society Research Award (2011), NIH Director’s New Innovator Award (2012), Human Frontier Science Research Award (2012), Outstanding Advisor of the Year Award, University of Illinois (2014), Rose Award for Teaching Excellence, University of Illinois (2014), Catalyst Award, Johns Hopkins (2016), Discovery Award, Johns Hopkins (2017). Dr. Myong serves on the Editorial Board for Molecular Cell, Biophysical Journal and Scientific Report. She is a Chair-elect of the FASEB Helicase and Nucleic Acid-Based Machine Conference (2025) and a Chair-Elect of the Gordon conference on Nucleic Acid (2027).

Selected Publications

  1. Rhine, K., Dasovich, M., Yoniles, J.*, Badiee, M., Skanchy, S., Ganser, L., Ge, Y., Fare, C.M., Shorter, J., Leung, A.K.L., Myong, S. "Poly(ADP-ribose) drives condensation of FUS via a transient interaction" Molecular Cell, Mol Cell. 2022 Mar 3;82(5):969-985
  2. Rhine, K., Makurath, M.A., Liu, James, Skanchy, S., Catalan, K.F., Lopez, C., Ma, Y., Ha, T., Chemla, Y.R., Myong, S. "ALS/FTLD-linked mutations in FUS glycine residues cause accelerated gelation and reduced interactions with wild-type FUS" Molecular Cell, 2020 Nov 19;80(4):666-681. [ Highlighted in Communcations Biology ]
  3. Lee, C., McNerney, C., Ma, K., Zhao, W., Wang, A., Myong, S. "R-loop induced G-quadruplex in non-template promotes transcription by successive R-loop formation" Nature Communications, 2020 Jul 7;11(1):3392.
  4. Niaki, A.G., Sarkar, J., Cai, X., Rhine, K., Vidaurre, V., Guy, B., Hurst, M., Lee, J.C., Koh, H.R., Guo, L., Fare, C.M., Shorter, J., Myong, S. "Loss of dynamic RNA interaction and aberrant phase separation induced by two distinct types of ALS/FTD-linked FUS mutations", Molecular Cell, 2020 Jan 2;77(1):82-94.e4. [ Highlighted in Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology ]
  5. Tippana, R., Chen, M. C., Demeshkina, N. A., Ferré-D’Amaré,A. R., Myong, S. "RNA G-quadruplex is resolved by repetitive and ATP-dependent mechanism of DHX36", Nat Commun., 2019 Apr 23;10(1):1855.
  6. Chen M. C., Tippana R., Demeshkina N. A., Murat P., Balasubramanian S., Myong S., Ferré-D'Amaré A. R., “Structural basis of G-quadruplex unwinding by the DEAH/RHA helicase DHX36”, Nature, 2018
  7. Koh HR, Ghanbariniaki A, Myong S., “RNA stem structure governs coupling of dicing and gene silencing in RNA interference”. PNAS, 2017 Nov 28;114(48):E10349-E10358.
  8. Qiu, Y., Levendosky, R., Chakravarthy, S., Bowman, G., Myong, S. "The Chd1 chromatin remodeler shifts nucleosomal DNA bidirectionally as a monomer" Molecular Cell, 2017 Oct 5; 68(1):76-88.e6.
  9. Kim Y., Myong S., “RNA remodeling activity of DEAD-box proteins tuned by protein concentration, RNA length and ATP”, Molecular Cell 2016 Sep 1;63(5):865-76.
  10. Tippana R., Hwang H., Bohr V.A., Opresko P.L., Myong S., “Single molecule imaging reveals a common mechanism shared by G-quadruplex resolving helicases”, PNAS 2016 Jul 26;113(30):8448-53

Publications

  1. A high throughput single molecule platform to study DNA supercoiling effect on protein-DNA interactions. bioRxiv. 2024 Oct 25. View Abstract
  2. The molecular mechanism for TERRA recruitment and annealing to telomeres. Nucleic Acids Res. 2024 Sep 23; 52(17):10490-10503. View Abstract
  3. Simultaneous probing of transcription, G-quadruplex, and R-loop. Methods Enzymol. 2024; 705:377-396. View Abstract
  4. 5'UTR G-quadruplex structure enhances translation in size dependent manner. Nat Commun. 2024 May 10; 15(1):3963. View Abstract
  5. BG4 antibody can recognize telomeric G-quadruplexes harboring destabilizing base modifications and lesions. Nucleic Acids Res. 2024 Feb 28; 52(4):1763-1778. View Abstract
  6. Single-molecule observation of G-quadruplex and R-loop formation induced by transcription. Methods Enzymol. 2024; 695:71-88. View Abstract
  7. The roles of FUS-RNA binding domain and low complexity domain in RNA-dependent phase separation. Structure. 2024 Feb 01; 32(2):177-187.e5. View Abstract
  8. Protocol for single-molecule pull-down of fluorescently tagged oligomers from cell lysates. STAR Protoc. 2023 Dec 15; 4(4):102716. View Abstract
  9. 5'UTR G-quadruplex structure enhances translation in size dependent manner. Res Sq. 2023 Sep 22. View Abstract
  10. Defining RNA oligonucleotides that reverse deleterious phase transitions of RNA-binding proteins with prion-like domains. bioRxiv. 2023 Sep 04. View Abstract
  11. Advanced imaging techniques for studying protein phase separation in living cells and at single-molecule level. Curr Opin Chem Biol. 2023 10; 76:102371. View Abstract
  12. Introduction: Phase Separation. Chem Rev. 2023 Jul 26; 123(14):8943-8944. View Abstract
  13. Benchmarking Molecular Dynamics Force Fields for All-Atom Simulations of Biological Condensates. J Chem Theory Comput. 2023 Jun 27; 19(12):3721-3740. View Abstract
  14. Switch-like compaction of poly(ADP-ribose) upon cation binding. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2023 05 09; 120(19):e2215068120. View Abstract
  15. Regulation of Biomolecular Condensates by Poly(ADP-ribose). Chem Rev. 2023 07 26; 123(14):9065-9093. View Abstract
  16. Nucleation and dissolution mechanism underlying amyotrophic lateral sclerosis/frontotemporal lobar dementia-linked fused in sarcoma condensates. iScience. 2023 Apr 21; 26(4):106537. View Abstract
  17. Switch-like Compaction of Poly(ADP-ribose) Upon Cation Binding. bioRxiv. 2023 Mar 13. View Abstract
  18. Benchmarking Molecular Dynamics Force Fields for All-Atom Simulations of Biological Condensates. bioRxiv. 2023 Feb 23. View Abstract
  19. Single-Molecule Fluorescence Methods to Study Protein-RNA Interactions Underlying Biomolecular Condensates. Methods Mol Biol. 2023; 2563:149-160. View Abstract
  20. A minimal construct of nuclear-import receptor Karyopherin-ß2 defines the regions critical for chaperone and disaggregation activity. J Biol Chem. 2023 02; 299(2):102806. View Abstract
  21. Engineered helicase replaces thermocycler in DNA amplification while retaining desired PCR characteristics. Nat Commun. 2022 10 23; 13(1):6312. View Abstract
  22. Vectorial folding of telomere overhang promotes higher accessibility. Nucleic Acids Res. 2022 06 24; 50(11):6271-6283. View Abstract
  23. Helicase mediated vectorial folding of telomere G-quadruplex. Methods Enzymol. 2022; 672:283-297. View Abstract
  24. TDP-43 represses cryptic exon inclusion in the FTD-ALS gene UNC13A. Nature. 2022 03; 603(7899):124-130. View Abstract
  25. Poly(ADP-ribose) drives condensation of FUS via a transient interaction. Mol Cell. 2022 03 03; 82(5):969-985.e11. View Abstract
  26. Protocol for generation and regeneration of PEG-passivated slides for single-molecule measurements. STAR Protoc. 2022 03 18; 3(1):101152. View Abstract
  27. Single molecule probing of disordered RNA binding proteins. STAR Protoc. 2022 03 18; 3(1):101131. View Abstract
  28. Next generation single-molecule techniques: Imaging, labeling, and manipulation in vitro and in cellulo. Mol Cell. 2022 01 20; 82(2):304-314. View Abstract
  29. TRF2 promotes dynamic and stepwise looping of POT1 bound telomeric overhang. Nucleic Acids Res. 2021 12 02; 49(21):12377-12393. View Abstract
  30. Probing steps in DNA transcription using single-molecule methods. J Biol Chem. 2021 09; 297(3):101086. View Abstract
  31. A Helicase Unwinds Hexanucleotide Repeat RNA G-Quadruplexes and Facilitates Repeat-Associated Non-AUG Translation. J Am Chem Soc. 2021 05 19; 143(19):7368-7379. View Abstract
  32. Is transcriptional regulation just going through a phase? Mol Cell. 2021 04 15; 81(8):1579-1585. View Abstract
  33. FRET-based dynamic structural biology: Challenges, perspectives and an appeal for open-science practices. Elife. 2021 03 29; 10. View Abstract
  34. Regeneration of PEG slide for multiple rounds of single-molecule measurements. Biophys J. 2021 05 04; 120(9):1788-1799. View Abstract
  35. Single-molecule and ensemble methods to probe RNP nucleation and condensate properties. Methods. 2022 01; 197:74-81. View Abstract
  36. ALS/FTLD-Linked Mutations in FUS Glycine Residues Cause Accelerated Gelation and Reduced Interactions with Wild-Type FUS. Mol Cell. 2020 Dec 17; 80(6):1139. View Abstract
  37. ALS/FTLD-Linked Mutations in FUS Glycine Residues Cause Accelerated Gelation and Reduced Interactions with Wild-Type FUS. Mol Cell. 2020 11 19; 80(4):666-681.e8. View Abstract
  38. E. coli Rep helicase and RecA recombinase unwind G4 DNA and are important for resistance to G4-stabilizing ligands. Nucleic Acids Res. 2020 07 09; 48(12):6640-6653. View Abstract
  39. R-loop induced G-quadruplex in non-template promotes transcription by successive R-loop formation. Nat Commun. 2020 07 07; 11(1):3392. View Abstract
  40. Position-Dependent Effect of Guanine Base Damage and Mutations on Telomeric G-Quadruplex and Telomerase Extension. Biochemistry. 2020 07 21; 59(28):2627-2639. View Abstract
  41. Methods to Study Phase-Separated Condensates and the Underlying Molecular Interactions. Trends Biochem Sci. 2020 11; 45(11):1004-1005. View Abstract
  42. The yeast Hrq1 helicase stimulates Pso2 translesion nuclease activity and thereby promotes DNA interstrand crosslink repair. J Biol Chem. 2020 07 03; 295(27):8945-8957. View Abstract
  43. Just Took a DNA Test, Turns Out 100% Not That Phase. Mol Cell. 2020 04 16; 78(2):193-194. View Abstract
  44. RNA promotes phase separation of glycolysis enzymes into yeast G bodies in hypoxia. Elife. 2020 04 16; 9. View Abstract
  45. RNA Droplets. Annu Rev Biophys. 2020 05 06; 49:247-265. View Abstract
  46. Antigenic Variation in Neisseria gonorrhoeae Occurs Independently of RecQ-Mediated Unwinding of the pilE G Quadruplex. J Bacteriol. 2020 01 15; 202(3). View Abstract
  47. Loss of Dynamic RNA Interaction and Aberrant Phase Separation Induced by Two Distinct Types of ALS/FTD-Linked FUS Mutations. Mol Cell. 2020 01 02; 77(1):82-94.e4. View Abstract
  48. Editorial overview: Advances and future prospects of molecular imaging for studying and quantifying biological processes. Curr Opin Chem Biol. 2019 08; 51:A4-A5. View Abstract
  49. RNA G-quadruplex is resolved by repetitive and ATP-dependent mechanism of DHX36. Nat Commun. 2019 04 23; 10(1):1855. View Abstract
  50. G-Quadruplex and Protein Binding by Single-Molecule FRET Microscopy. Methods Mol Biol. 2019; 2035:309-322. View Abstract
  51. Ubiquilin 2 modulates ALS/FTD-linked FUS-RNA complex dynamics and stress granule formation. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2018 12 04; 115(49):E11485-E11494. View Abstract
  52. A guanine-flipping and sequestration mechanism for G-quadruplex unwinding by RecQ helicases. Nat Commun. 2018 10 10; 9(1):4201. View Abstract
  53. Single-Cell Imaging Approaches for Studying Small-RNA-Induced Gene Regulation. Biophys J. 2018 07 17; 115(2):203-208. View Abstract
  54. Structural basis of G-quadruplex unfolding by the DEAH/RHA helicase DHX36. Nature. 2018 06; 558(7710):465-469. View Abstract
  55. mRNA structure determines specificity of a polyQ-driven phase separation. Science. 2018 05 25; 360(6391):922-927. View Abstract
  56. FUS Regulates Activity of MicroRNA-Mediated Gene Silencing. Mol Cell. 2018 03 01; 69(5):787-801.e8. View Abstract
  57. Probing Dynamic Assembly and Disassembly of Rad51 Tuned by Srs2 Using smFRET. Methods Enzymol. 2018; 600:321-345. View Abstract
  58. Single-Molecule and Ensemble Methods to Probe Initial Stages of RNP Granule Assembly. Methods Mol Biol. 2018; 1814:325-338. View Abstract
  59. Molecular mechanisms by which oxidative DNA damage promotes telomerase activity. Nucleic Acids Res. 2017 Nov 16; 45(20):11752-11765. View Abstract
  60. Single-cell analysis of early antiviral gene expression reveals a determinant of stochastic IFNB1 expression. Integr Biol (Camb). 2017 Nov 13; 9(11):857-867. View Abstract
  61. RNA stem structure governs coupling of dicing and gene silencing in RNA interference. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2017 11 28; 114(48):E10349-E10358. View Abstract
  62. The Chd1 Chromatin Remodeler Shifts Nucleosomal DNA Bidirectionally as a Monomer. Mol Cell. 2017 Oct 05; 68(1):76-88.e6. View Abstract
  63. RNA Scanning of a Molecular Machine with a Built-in Ruler. J Am Chem Soc. 2017 01 11; 139(1):262-268. View Abstract
  64. Oxidative guanine base damage regulates human telomerase activity. Nat Struct Mol Biol. 2016 Dec; 23(12):1092-1100. View Abstract
  65. RNA Remodeling Activity of DEAD Box Proteins Tuned by Protein Concentration, RNA Length, and ATP. Mol Cell. 2016 09 01; 63(5):865-76. View Abstract
  66. Single-molecule imaging reveals a common mechanism shared by G-quadruplex-resolving helicases. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2016 07 26; 113(30):8448-53. View Abstract
  67. Single molecule probing by fluorescence and force detection. Methods. 2016 08 01; 105:1-2. View Abstract
  68. Quantitative analysis and prediction of G-quadruplex forming sequences in double-stranded DNA. Nucleic Acids Res. 2016 06 02; 44(10):4807-17. View Abstract
  69. Visualizing repetitive diffusion activity of double-strand RNA binding proteins by single molecule fluorescence assays. Methods. 2016 08 01; 105:109-18. View Abstract
  70. G-quadruplex formation in double strand DNA probed by NMM and CV fluorescence. Nucleic Acids Res. 2015 Sep 18; 43(16):7961-70. View Abstract
  71. Dynamic profiling of double-stranded RNA binding proteins. Nucleic Acids Res. 2015 Sep 03; 43(15):7566-76. View Abstract
  72. The disordered P granule protein LAF-1 drives phase separation into droplets with tunable viscosity and dynamics. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2015 Jun 09; 112(23):7189-94. View Abstract
  73. Molecular mechanism of resolving trinucleotide repeat hairpin by helicases. Structure. 2015 Jun 02; 23(6):1018-27. View Abstract
  74. Cancer. The transcription factor GABP selectively binds and activates the mutant TERT promoter in cancer. Science. 2015 May 29; 348(6238):1036-9. View Abstract
  75. Nanopore-based assay for detection of methylation in double-stranded DNA fragments. ACS Nano. 2015 Jan 27; 9(1):290-300. View Abstract
  76. Single-molecule real-time detection of telomerase extension activity. Sci Rep. 2014 Sep 29; 4:6391. View Abstract
  77. Corrigendum to "Context-Dependent Remodeling of Rad51-DNA Complexes by Srs2 Is Mediated by a Specific Protein-Protein Interaction" [J. Mol. Biol.426 (2014) 1883-1897]. J Mol Biol. 2014 Sep 09; 426(18):3195-3196. View Abstract
  78. G-quadruplex conformation and dynamics are determined by loop length and sequence. Nucleic Acids Res. 2014 Jul; 42(12):8106-14. View Abstract
  79. Repetitive RNA unwinding by RNA helicase A facilitates RNA annealing. Nucleic Acids Res. 2014 Jul; 42(13):8556-64. View Abstract
  80. Substrate recognition and specificity of double-stranded RNA binding proteins. Biochemistry. 2014 Jun 03; 53(21):3457-66. View Abstract
  81. Telomeric overhang length determines structural dynamics and accessibility to telomerase and ALT-associated proteins. Structure. 2014 Jun 10; 22(6):842-53. View Abstract
  82. Context-dependent remodeling of Rad51-DNA complexes by Srs2 is mediated by a specific protein-protein interaction. J Mol Biol. 2014 May 01; 426(9):1883-97. View Abstract
  83. Protein induced fluorescence enhancement (PIFE) for probing protein-nucleic acid interactions. Chem Soc Rev. 2014 Feb 21; 43(4):1221-9. View Abstract
  84. Srs2 prevents Rad51 filament formation by repetitive motion on DNA. Nat Commun. 2013; 4:2281. View Abstract
  85. ATP-independent diffusion of double-stranded RNA binding proteins. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2013 Jan 02; 110(1):151-6. View Abstract
  86. ATP hydrolysis enhances RNA recognition and antiviral signal transduction by the innate immune sensor, laboratory of genetics and physiology 2 (LGP2). J Biol Chem. 2013 Jan 11; 288(2):938-46. View Abstract
  87. POT1-TPP1 regulates telomeric overhang structural dynamics. Structure. 2012 Nov 07; 20(11):1872-80. View Abstract
  88. A single-molecule view of chaperonin cooperativity. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2011 Oct 11; 108(41):16865-6. View Abstract
  89. Single-molecule nanopositioning: structural transitions of a helicase-DNA complex during ATP hydrolysis. Biophys J. 2011 Aug 17; 101(4):976-84. View Abstract
  90. Rotations of the 2B sub-domain of E. coli UvrD helicase/translocase coupled to nucleotide and DNA binding. J Mol Biol. 2011 Aug 19; 411(3):633-48. View Abstract
  91. Protein induced fluorescence enhancement as a single molecule assay with short distance sensitivity. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2011 May 03; 108(18):7414-8. View Abstract
  92. PcrA helicase dismantles RecA filaments by reeling in DNA in uniform steps. Cell. 2010 Aug 20; 142(4):544-55. View Abstract
  93. Stepwise translocation of nucleic acid motors. Curr Opin Struct Biol. 2010 Feb; 20(1):121-7. View Abstract
  94. Single molecule nanocontainers made porous using a bacterial toxin. J Am Chem Soc. 2009 Oct 21; 131(41):14844-9. View Abstract
  95. Cytosolic viral sensor RIG-I is a 5'-triphosphate-dependent translocase on double-stranded RNA. Science. 2009 Feb 20; 323(5917):1070-4. View Abstract
  96. Roles of RIG-I N-terminal tandem CARD and splice variant in TRIM25-mediated antiviral signal transduction. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2008 Oct 28; 105(43):16743-8. View Abstract
  97. Spring-loaded mechanism of DNA unwinding by hepatitis C virus NS3 helicase. Science. 2007 Jul 27; 317(5837):513-6. View Abstract
  98. Unraveling helicase mechanisms one molecule at a time. Nucleic Acids Res. 2006; 34(15):4225-31. View Abstract
  99. Real-time observation of RecA filament dynamics with single monomer resolution. Cell. 2006 Aug 11; 126(3):515-27. View Abstract
  100. Bridging conformational dynamics and function using single-molecule spectroscopy. Structure. 2006 Apr; 14(4):633-43. View Abstract
  101. Repetitive shuttling of a motor protein on DNA. Nature. 2005 Oct 27; 437(7063):1321-5. View Abstract
  102. DNA-binding orientation and domain conformation of the E. coli rep helicase monomer bound to a partial duplex junction: single-molecule studies of fluorescently labeled enzymes. J Mol Biol. 2004 Feb 13; 336(2):395-408. View Abstract
  103. Effect of nicotinic acid administration on hepatic very low density lipoprotein-triglyceride production. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 2001 Mar; 280(3):E540-7. View Abstract

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