[{"content":"","date":"4 October 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/authors/","section":"Authors","summary":"","title":"Authors","type":"authors"},{"content":"Ideas and commentary on biology and research from the AneneLab.\nSubscribe via RSS\n","date":"4 October 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/blog/","section":"Beyond the Sequence","summary":"Ideas and commentary on biology and research from the AneneLab.\nSubscribe via RSS\n","title":"Beyond the Sequence","type":"blog"},{"content":"An enhancer tells us where an RNA is produced, but not what it becomes. eRNAs are often treated as unstable markers of enhancer activity, yet some are processed, persist, move beyond the nucleus and regulate other RNAs. The emerging evidence suggests it is time to follow the RNA itself: its processing, stability, localisation, interactions and function. Our framework recognises nascent, transient, stable, regulatory and translated states, without assuming every eRNA passes through them all. The key is to match experiments to the biology being investigated. Where an eRNA starts matters, but what it does cannot be inferred from its origin.\n","date":"4 October 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/blog/born-at-the-enhancer-defined-by-function/","section":"Beyond the Sequence","summary":"An enhancer tells us where an RNA is produced, but not what it becomes. The emerging evidence suggests it is time to follow the RNA itself.","title":"Born at the Enhancer, Defined by Function","type":"blog"},{"content":"","date":"4 October 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/authors/chinedu-anene/","section":"Authors","summary":"","title":"Chinedu-Anene","type":"authors"},{"content":"","date":"4 October 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/tags/enhancer-rnas/","section":"Tags","summary":"","title":"Enhancer RNAs","type":"tags"},{"content":"We combine molecular biology, computational genomics and AI to investigate regulatory DNA and noncoding RNA function, with a particular focus on enhancer RNAs, silencers, post-transcriptional regulation and non-canonical mechanisms in health and disease. We want to understand how these mechanisms maintain normal cellular function, how they become disrupted in disease, and what this reveals about the effects of noncoding mutations.\nOur research Covers RNA processing and function, silencers and noncoding mutations in cancer, senescence and age-related macular degeneration. Research themes Our resources Support research in computational genomics and regulatory biology through software and reproducible workflows. Explore tools Our lab chatter Explores ideas, questions and the occasional rabbit hole in biology and research.\nHave something to share? Write with us. Read the blog ","date":"4 October 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/","section":"Regulatory DNA and RNA function in health and disease","summary":"We combine molecular biology, computational genomics and AI to investigate regulatory DNA and noncoding RNA function, with a particular focus on enhancer RNAs, silencers, post-transcriptional regulation and non-canonical mechanisms in health and disease. We want to understand how these mechanisms maintain normal cellular function, how they become disrupted in disease, and what this reveals about the effects of noncoding mutations.\n","title":"Regulatory DNA and RNA function in health and disease","type":"page"},{"content":"","date":"4 October 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/tags/rna-biology/","section":"Tags","summary":"","title":"RNA Biology","type":"tags"},{"content":"","date":"4 October 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/tags/","section":"Tags","summary":"","title":"Tags","type":"tags"},{"content":"","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/categories/","section":"Categories","summary":"","title":"Categories","type":"categories"},{"content":" Research enquiries # School of Health\nLeeds Beckett University, PD511, Portland Building\nCity Campus, Leeds LS1 3HE\nChinedu A. Anene\nEmails # C.A.Anene [at] leedsbeckett.ac.uk\na.anene [at] qmul.ac.uk\nLinkedIn: Chinedu Anene, PhD\nTwitter: @caanenedr\n","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/contact/","section":"Regulatory DNA and RNA function in health and disease","summary":"Research enquiries # School of Health\nLeeds Beckett University, PD511, Portland Building\nCity Campus, Leeds LS1 3HE\nChinedu A. Anene\n","title":"Contact","type":"page"},{"content":"If you’re interested in our research and joining the lab, we’d be pleased to hear from you.\nCurrent vacancies # There are no funded vacancies currently advertised.\nInternships # Internships are available in bioinformatics only. Please get in touch with your interests, availability and a brief CV.\nPhD study # Our PhD projects involve either bioinformatics alone or a combination of bioinformatics and wet-lab research. Please send a brief outline of your interests and your CV. Admission follows the university’s application and review process.\nPostdoctoral fellowships # We are open to discussing support for postdoctoral fellowship applications where the proposed research fits the lab. Please get in touch with your research idea, CV and the fellowship scheme and deadline you have in mind.\nEnquiries: Chinedu A. Anene\n","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/join/","section":"Regulatory DNA and RNA function in health and disease","summary":"If you’re interested in our research and joining the lab, we’d be pleased to hear from you.\nCurrent vacancies # There are no funded vacancies currently advertised.\n","title":"Join us","type":"page"},{"content":" Lab lead # Chinedu A. Anene · ORCID\nLab pioneers # Rene Kuklinkova Characterisation of Senescent Cells across Human Tissues and Lifespan\nI’ve always known I wanted to pursue a career in the life sciences.\nDiscovering bioinformatics during my undergraduate studies changed how I approach research.\nI was particularly drawn to the potential of large-scale datasets and how much existing data remains underexplored.\nDr. loading…\nNatalia Benova Identification and Characterisation of Regulatory Noncoding Mutations in Ovarian Cancer\nDuring my PhD, I’ve learned to look beyond computational predictions and always come back to the biology.\nConnecting bioinformatics with experimental approaches has changed how I think about and conduct research, and I’d like to keep growing as an independent researcher.\nDr. loading…\nLab members # Emanuela Ibenye Mapping the Post-Transcriptional Regulatory Landscape of Enhancer RNAs in Cellular Homeostasis: Mechanisms of eRNA Regulation in Normal Physiology\nMy interest in science started long before I discovered bioinformatics. From a very young age, I was convinced that cells, antibodies and all the other tiny components of the body were little people working behind the scenes to keep us alive. I imagined them running around, communicating and doing their jobs like a miniature workforce inside me.\nOnce I was old enough to use a microscope, I discovered that, unfortunately, there were no tiny humans to be found. Despite this devastating revelation, I still thought the microscopic world was pretty cool, so I stuck with science.\nPhD student\nChukwu Chibuike Victor Enhancer RNA Processing in Squamous Cell Carcinoma Development and Progression: Functional Roles and Therapeutic Potential\nI have a background in Biomedical Science and Applied Bioscience.\nI’m fascinated by how small molecular changes can have significant effects on cells and disease, and I enjoy bringing molecular biology and bioinformatics together to explore these questions.\nPhD student\nSunday Nweke Egwu Identifying Distal Silencer Elements from Transcriptional and Chromatin Accessibility Dynamics with In-Vitro Functional Validation\nI have a background in Biomedical Science and an MSc in Applied Bioscience.\nI’m interested in how gene regulation shapes cellular behaviour and disease, and in bringing computational and experimental biology together to understand these mechanisms.\nPhD student\nKingsley Anya Modelling Post-Transcriptional Enhancer RNA Function through Foundational AI Models for Rare Genetic Disease Interpretation\nI have a background in Medical Laboratory Science, molecular diagnostics, biomedical research and data science.\nMy interest in computational biology grew from seeing how biological data can reveal patterns that laboratory testing alone may miss.\nI’m particularly interested in using computational methods to understand complex biological systems.\nPhD student\nOkechukwu Emmanuel Akwa Modelling Post-Transcriptional Long Noncoding RNA Function for Prioritisation of Noncoding Mutations in Squamous Cell Carcinoma\nI have a background in biomedical science, molecular biology and cancer biology.\nI’m interested in how molecular changes influence cancer beyond protein-coding genes.\nMy interest in computational approaches grew from wanting to explore complex regulatory mechanisms and large-scale genomic data that experimental methods alone could not fully explain.\nPhD student\nAlumni # Joseph Cogan (MRes, 2021) — now a postdoctoral researcher, Uni. of Leeds. Faisal Alsammarraie (MSc, 2025) - now Founder, Studentli. Khidash Yasir (BSc, 2026) - now MRes, Imperial Amanda Kamara (BSc, 2023) Toluwalope Oluwusi (Internship, 2026) ","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/people/","section":"Regulatory DNA and RNA function in health and disease","summary":"Lab lead # Chinedu A. Anene · ORCID\nLab pioneers # Rene Kuklinkova Characterisation of Senescent Cells across Human Tissues and Lifespan\nI’ve always known I wanted to pursue a career in the life sciences.\nDiscovering bioinformatics during my undergraduate studies changed how I approach research.\nI was particularly drawn to the potential of large-scale datasets and how much existing data remains underexplored.\nDr. loading…\nNatalia Benova Identification and Characterisation of Regulatory Noncoding Mutations in Ovarian Cancer\nDuring my PhD, I’ve learned to look beyond computational predictions and always come back to the biology.\nConnecting bioinformatics with experimental approaches has changed how I think about and conduct research, and I’d like to keep growing as an independent researcher.\nDr. loading…\n","title":"People","type":"page"},{"content":"Molecular biology of enhancer RNAs: Defining how eRNA processing, stability, localisation and molecular interactions govern their functions, particularly in post-transcriptional regulation.\nSilencers and regulatory DNA: Identifying distal silencer elements through transcriptional and chromatin accessibility dynamics, and testing their regulatory functions experimentally.\nNoncoding RNA function and genetic variation: Investigating noncoding RNA regulatory networks and integrating molecular evidence with computational and AI models to interpret noncoding variants in health and disease.\nCancer: Investigating eRNA processing, long noncoding RNA function and regulatory noncoding mutations in ovarian cancer and squamous cell carcinoma, including their roles in post-transcriptional regulation, mechanical memory, metastasis and disease progression.\nAge-related macular degeneration: Investigating eRNA dysregulation and mechanoresponsive post-transcriptional networks, including their potential roles in pathological mechanical memory and retinal disease.\nExplore our publications for work from the lab.\n","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/research/","section":"Regulatory DNA and RNA function in health and disease","summary":"Molecular biology of enhancer RNAs: Defining how eRNA processing, stability, localisation and molecular interactions govern their functions, particularly in post-transcriptional regulation.\nSilencers and regulatory DNA: Identifying distal silencer elements through transcriptional and chromatin accessibility dynamics, and testing their regulatory functions experimentally.\n","title":"Research","type":"page"},{"content":" Resources developed or maintained in the Anene Lab, supporting research in regulatory biology, computational genomics and data analysis. Developed and actively maintained in the Anene Lab # eRNAkit and Eden underpin our current research, connecting computational analysis with experimental readouts.\neRNAkit # Annotations, databases and computational tools for investigating enhancer RNA processing, function and post-transcriptional regulation.\nCode and documentation\nEden # A biological image analysis suite for quantifying experimental readouts in our enhancer RNA research, complementing giExtract.\nCode and documentation\nOthers resoruces # RBPInper · paper Developed by CAA at QMUL; maintained in Anene Lab # giExtract · paper ACSNI · paper Decosus · paper Retired resoruces # Earlier tools and archived projects can be found in our repository collection.\n","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/software/","section":"Regulatory DNA and RNA function in health and disease","summary":" Resources developed or maintained in the Anene Lab, supporting research in regulatory biology, computational genomics and data analysis. Developed and actively maintained in the Anene Lab # eRNAkit and Eden underpin our current research, connecting computational analysis with experimental readouts.\n","title":"Resources","type":"page"},{"content":"","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/series/","section":"Series","summary":"","title":"Series","type":"series"}]