CRC1709 congratulates our Early Career Researcher Fengbiao Zhou on his successful presentation at the European Hematology Association (EHA) 2026 Congress in Stockholm, Sweden.
Fengbiao presented “NPM1c Requires snoRNA-Dependent Chromatin Binding for Leukemogenesis” during the Scientific Topic Acute Myeloid Leukemia— Biology & Translational Research.
The presented work provides new insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying NPM1-mutant acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Using advanced genomic, transcriptomic, and functional approaches, the researchers demonstrated that mutant NPM1c depends on interactions with small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs) to bind chromatin and maintain leukemic gene expression programs.
Importantly, the study identified SCARNA7 as a selective molecular dependency in NPM1-mutant AML. Disrupting this RNA-dependent mechanism impaired leukemic cell growth, highlighting a promising therapeutic vulnerability and expanding our understanding of RNA-mediated regulation in leukemia.
(EHA2026 Congress Copyright)
The work represents a collaborative effort involving researchers from the University Hospital Heidelberg, EMBL, DKFZ, HI-STEM, Goethe University Frankfurt, Baylor College of Medicine, and other partner institutions. CRC1709 Principal Investigators Andreas Trumpp, Carsten Müller-Tidow, Maximilian Blank, and Hannah Uckelmann contributed to the study.
We warmly congratulate Fengbiao and all collaborators on this successful presentation and look forward to following the continued development of this exciting research.
