Integrative network analysis for identification of new proteins involved in NMD or its regulation

Background: Nonsense-mediated mRNA decay (NMD) is a surveillance pathway that recognizes and selectively degrades mRNAs carrying premature translation termination codons (PTCs). NMD has been associated with many genetic diseases and some forms of cancer caused by nonsense or frameshift mutations that introduce PTCs. NMD is a complex process that relies on the involvement of numerous players which interact with each other in a highly organized manner. However, the interactions and connectivity among these components is only partly elucidated. Recent studies have shown that NMD is also involved in the regulation of apparently “normal” transcripts, suggesting a greater role in gene expression regulation.The authors acknowledge the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) for the PhD grant: PD/BD/130959/2017N/