Department of Ribonucleoprotein Biochemistry

Dr. hab. Anna Kurzyńska-Kokorniak, prof. IBCH PAS

Head of Department

akurzyns@ibch.poznan.pl
ext. 1264

Research activity

Research area

the role of RNA/ DNA in the activity and functions of nucleic acid binding proteins
mechanisms involved in the regulation of gene expression
ribonuclease Dicer variants (gene, transcript, protein)
endogenous factors regulating the activity of ribonuclease Dicer
designing and testing of inhibitors against Dicer-type ribonucleases
the activity of Dicer-type ribonucleases in the context of viral infections, viral miRNAs
unknown areas of activity of Dicer-type ribonucleases: ribonuclease Dicer as a nucleic acid annealer, binding of G-quadruplex structures
diseases linked to malfunction of Dicer
structural studies of the RNA•Dicer and DNA•Dicer complexes
inhibition of the SARS-CoV-2 polymerase complex

Keywords:

nucleic acid binding proteins
Dicer-type ribonucleases
SARS-CoV-2 polymerase complex
regulatory RNAs
RNA-protein interactions, DNA-protein interactions
regulation of the activity of Dicer-type ribonucleases
inhibitors of the SARS-CoV-2 polymerase complex
regulation of gene expression

Research Projects

2024/55/B/NZ2/02771 The complex nature of multidomain proteins: the unmasked activity of human Dicer ribonuclease – expect the unexpected. NSC Poland – OPUS 28 (AKK)
2021/41/B/NZ2/03781 Close Encounters of the Third Kind: what happens when ribonuclease Dicer encounters in the cell RNA and DNA adopting G-quadruplex structures. NSC Poland – OPUS 21 (AKK)
2016/22/E/NZ1/00422 Unknown areas of activity of human ribonuclease Dicer. NSC Poland – SONATA BIS 6 (AKK)
2021/41/N/NZ2/03849 The cellular RNA interactome of the human Dicer helicase domain. NSC Poland – PRELUDIUM 20 (KC)
2024/08/X/NZ1/00899 Obtaining two Dicer ribonuclease variants of the model organism Xenopus laevis – preparation for biochemical activity studies and structural analyses. NSC Poland – MINIATURA 8 (ASz)
2021/05/X/NZ1/01778 Understanding the structural determinants of interactions between the PPC cassette of human ribonuclease Dicer and the RNA/ DNA molecules adopting G quadruplex structures. NSC Poland – MINIATURA 5 (KSz)
POIR.01.01.01-00-2450/20 Development of a high-throughput system for rapid assessment of biological activity of compounds targeting the SARS-CoV-2 replication complex, selection of compounds with the highest therapeutic potential and assessment of their cytotoxicity to human cells. The National Centre for Research and Development – Fast Track 5 (project implemented in the consortium, project leader: ideas4biology Sp. z o. o.; task leader from IBCH PAS: AKK)

Selected publications

Szczepanska A, Wojcik K, Kurzynska-Kokorniak A*. RNase III Enzymes and Their Accessory Domains (in: Molecular Evolution of RNA Regulatory Enzymes and Their Systems, Nucleic Acids and Molecular Biology 38), 161–201, Springer Nature Switzerland AG, eds. A. Kanai, A. W. Nicholson, 2025. doi: 10.1007/978-3-032-03300-0_7.
Wojcik K, Krzeminska P, Kurzynska-Kokorniak A*. Possible role of human ribonuclease Dicer in the regulation of R loops. FEBS Open Bio. 2025 Sep;15(9):1406-1418. doi: 10.1002/2211-5463.70026.
Ciechanowska K, Szczepanska A, Szpotkowski K, Wojcik K, Urbanowicz A, Kurzynska-Kokorniak A*. The human Dicer helicase domain is capable of ATP hydrolysis and single-stranded nucleic acid binding. BMC Biol. 2024 Dec 18;22(1):287. doi: 10.1186/s12915-024-02082-x.
Koralewska N, Corradi E, Milewski MC, Masante L, Szczepanska A, Kierzek R, Figlerowicz M, Baudet ML, Kurzynska-Kokorniak A*. Short 2'-O-methyl/LNA oligomers as highly-selective inhibitors of miRNA production in vitro and in vivo. Nucleic Acids Res. 2024; 52(10):5804-5824. doi: 10.1093/nar/gkae284.
Szpotkowski K, Wójcik K, Kurzyńska-Kokorniak A*. Structural studies of protein-nucleic acid complexes: A brief overview of the selected techniques. Comput Struct Biotechnol J. 2023; 21:2858-2872. doi: 10.1016/j.csbj.2023.04.028.
Kazimierczyk M, Wojnicka M, Biała E, Żydowicz-Machtel P, Imiołczyk B, Ostrowski T, Kurzynska-Kokorniak A, Wrzesinski J. Characteristics of Transfer RNA-Derived Fragments Expressed during Human Renal Cell Development: The Role of Dicer in tRF Biogenesis. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022; 23(7):3644. doi: 10.3390/ijms23073644.
Koralewska N, Szczepanska A, Ciechanowska K, Wojnicka M, Pokornowska M, Milewski MC, Gudanis D, Baranowski D, Nithin C, Bujnicki JM, Gdaniec Z, Figlerowicz M, Kurzynska-Kokorniak A*. RNA and DNA G-quadruplexes bind to human dicer and inhibit its activity. Cell Mol Life Sci. 2021; 78(7):3709-3724. doi: 10.1007/s00018-021-03795-w.
Szczepanska A, Wojnicka M, Kurzynska-Kokorniak A*. The Significance of the DUF283 Domain for the Activity of Human Ribonuclease Dicer. Int J Mol Sci. 2021;22(16):8690. doi: 10.3390/ijms22168690.
Ciechanowska K, Pokornowska M, Kurzyńska-Kokorniak A*. Genetic Insight into the Domain Structure and Functions of Dicer-Type Ribonucleases. Int J Mol Sci. 2021; 22(2):616. doi: 10.3390/ijms22020616.
Pokornowska M, Milewski MC, Ciechanowska K, Szczepańska A, Wojnicka M, Radogostowicz Z, Figlerowicz M, Kurzynska-Kokorniak A*. The RNA-RNA base pairing potential of human Dicer and Ago2 proteins. Cell Mol Life Sci. 2020; 77(16):3231-3244. doi: 10.1007/s00018-019-03344-6. ·
Wojnicka M, Szczepanska A, Kurzynska-Kokorniak A*. Unknown Areas of Activity of Human Ribonuclease Dicer: A Putative Deoxyribonuclease Activity. Molecules. 2020; 25(6):1414. doi: 10.3390/molecules25061414.
Milewski MC, Kamel K, Kurzynska-Kokorniak A, Chmielewski MK, Figlerowicz M. EvOligo – a novel software to design and group libraries of oligonucleotides applicable for nucleic acid-based experiments. J Comput Biol. 2017; 24(10):1014-1028. doi: 10.1089/cmb.2016.0154.
Mickiewicz A, Sarzyńska J, Miłostan M, Kurzynska-Kokorniak A, Rybarczyk A, Łukasiak P, Kuliński T, Figlerowicz M, Błażewicz J. Modeling of the catalytic core of Arabidopsis thaliana Dicer-like 4 protein and its complex with double-stranded RNA. Comput Biol Chem. 2017; 66:44-56. doi: 10.1016/j.compbiolchem.2016.11.003.
Kurzynska-Kokorniak A*, Pokornowska M, Koralewska N, Hoffmann W, Bienkowska-Szewczyk K, Figlerowicz M*. Revealing a new activity of the human Dicer DUF283 domain in vitro. Sci Rep. 2016; 6:23989. doi: 10.1038/srep23989.
Kurzynska-Kokorniak A, Koralewska N, Pokornowska M, Urbanowicz A, Tworak A, Mickiewicz A, Figlerowicz M. The many faces of Dicer: the complexity of the mechanisms regulating Dicer gene expression and enzyme activities. Nucleic Acids Res. 2015; 43(9):4365-80. doi: 10.1093/nar/gkv328.

* corresponding author

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Department of Ribonucleoprotein Biochemistry

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Researchers:

PhD students:

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Research area

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Research Projects

Selected publications

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