Qi Chen

After obtaining my M.D. at Chongqing Medical University, I began my research journey at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. What started as a study of mouse embryo development and implantation became a twisted and exciting journey of discovery, eventually leading to my Ph.D. work on water channels (AQP3) in sperm osmoadaptation. I then turned to study small RNAs in sperm and pioneered the systematic discovery of sperm tsRNAs and rsRNAs, showing that these RNAs—together with their RNA modifications—transmit paternal environmental information to offspring as a 'sperm RNA code.' To overcome the detection bias of standard sequencing, we developed PANDORA-seq, which uncovers a previously invisible world of modified small RNAs and enables new biology. Our group is moving to define how the sperm RNA code of aging and environmental stressors shapes early embryonic cell fate and offspring health, and exploring ‘RNA codes’ more broadly in contexts such as aptamer-like functions of small RNAs, RNA structural memory, autoimmune mechanisms, and precision medicine. Being a scientific wanderer so far, I enjoyed the process of following clues and exploring whatever directions the clues lead us to (if get funded). Knowing how small and insignificant we are in the universe, I'm grateful and fulfilled to be with a group of motivated people who turn curiosity into scientific discoveries, with our limited minds and hands.