The Buffalo RNA Symposium 2026: Building Momentum

The Buffalo RNA Symposium 2026 convened on June 16-17, 2026, at the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at the University at Buffalo. This year's event brought together more than 100 RNA researchers, including faculty, postdoctoral fellows, graduate students, technicians, and scientists, from more than 20 institutions across the country, with representation from leading institutions such as Columbia University, the University of Chicago, Northwestern University, UC Riverside, and more. The symposium also attracted international participation from Tel Aviv University in Israel, underscoring the event's growing reach as a forum for scientific exchange, networking, and collaboration.

The symposium was a collaborative effort, organized by Dr. Sarah Walker and Dr. Monica Pillon from the University at Buffalo, alongside Dr. Xuhang Liu and Dr. Veena Prahlad from Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, in partnership with the Buffalo RNA Group (BRG). The program featured three distinguished keynote speakers: Dr. Rachel Green (Johns Hopkins University), Dr. Anastasia Khvorova (UMass Chan Medical School), and Dr. John Lis (Cornell University). With 25 invited/selected talks and over 60 posters presented in two days, the symposium truly delivered on the RNA Society's mission of "facilitating, sharing and disseminating experimental results and emerging concepts in RNA research."

Buffalo RNA Symposium 2026 organizers, keynote speakers, and poster award winners.

The symposium featured six highly engaging scientific sessions:

·       Session I:"RNA in Diseases;"

·       Session II:"RNA Therapeutics and Regulatory RNAs;"

·       Session III: "Control of Translation;"

·       Session IV: "RNA Regulation in Stress and Disease;" 

​·       Session V: "RNA Editing, Structures, and Condensates;"

​·       Session VI: "Transcription and Splicing."

In Session II, Dr. Anastasia Khvorova from the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School presented her keynote speech titled "Chemical Engineering of Therapeutic RNAs for Extrahepatic Delivery."

In Session III, Dr. Rachel Green from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine presented her keynote speech titled "ZAK (and GCN2) Activation at the Colliding Ribosome."

In Session VI, Dr. John Lis from Cornell University presented his keynote speech titled "Long-Range Transcriptional and Architectural Interplay of Enhancers, Facilitators and Promoters."

Feedback on the symposium was overwhelmingly positive, with attendees commending the high quality of presentations and the vibrant discussions throughout the entire meeting.

The organizers gratefully acknowledge the generous financial and administrative support provided by the RNA Society, Lexogen Inc., the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, and Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, as well as our corporate sponsors, Alnylam, KNAUER, New England BioLabs, Norgen Biotek, and 10x Genomics. Their contributions were instrumental in making this year's expanded symposium possible and, importantly, enabled us to provide substantial subsidies for all participating trainees—the next generation of RNA scientists—to attend this event.

We are also deeply grateful to Ms. Natalie Brock for her invaluable assistance with event logistics, and to more than a dozen dedicated volunteers whose time and effort behind the scenes helped create a successful, memorable, and impactful symposium.