HNRNPU RNA targets during neural differentiation using fRIP-Seq

HNRNPU is an RNA-binding protein with diverse roles in regulating gene expression. Pathogenic genetic variants of HNRNPU cause a severe neurodevelopmental disorder (NDD), but the underlying molecular mechanisms are unclear. Here, we investigated the RNA targets of HNRNPU in neuroepithelial stem cells (NES) and differentiating neural cells derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells. Notably, both PPI partners and interacting mRNAs implicated HNRNPU in translation, a role that had not been recognized before. Also, we found that HNRNPU associated with mRNAs encoding proteins important for neuronal development. Formaldehyde crosslinking followed by ribonucleoprotein immunoprecipitation was performed to pull down HNRNPU and all interacting RNAs. These RNAs were then extracted and sequenced. The data was analysed by