RNA & antiviral immunity. Sara studied Human Biology at the University Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona. She next secured a PhD fellowship at the Center for Genomic Regulation of Barcelona to study the molecular mechanisms of pre-mRNA splicing. After obtaining an EMBO long-term postdoctoral fellowship, Sara moved to Edinburgh to study microRNA biogenesis at the MRC Human Genetics Unit. She next became independent thanks to a Chancellor’s fellowship from the University of Edinburgh, and a Sir Henry Dale fellowship from the Wellcome Trust. She is currently funded by the Wellcome Trust and Leverhulme Trust as a Senior Research Fellow. Her lab focuses on the mechanisms that allow cells to discriminate self vs non-self RNAs, and the importance of this discrimination for antiviral defence as well as early development. Sara Macias Macias Lab website Lab members Dr. Jeroen Wittevedelt, Dr. Katrina Gordon, Dr. Joanna Wojtus, Felix Mueller, Katharina Kases, Camila Guzman Cardozo, and Holly Armstrong Research To defend against pathogens, organisms must efficiently discriminate self from non-self nucleic acids. Although both the pathogen and host RNAs are composed of the same four nucleotides; they differ in their secondary structure, post-transcriptional modifications, and subcellular localisation. These differences are exploited by the immune sensors to appropriately activate defence responses. In our group we study how this discrimination occurs, and the importance of balanced immune responses in early development and in the context of human genetic diseases. We are particularly interested in the role of transposable elements and RNA-binding proteins in the control of balanced immune responses.Unbalanced immune responses lead to embryonic defects. Image Figure LegendActivating the immune response in the early development of zebrafish causes developmental defects. Injection of double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) in fish embryos activates immune responses that cause abnormal head (center) or tail development (right), compared to uninjected embryos (left). From Witteveldt et al (2025). Selected publications Control of retrotransposon-driven activation of the interferon response by the double-stranded RNA binding protein DGCR8. Gázquez-Gutiérrez A, Chin P, Peris G, Gordon K, Marchante PG, Witteveldt J, Tristán-Ramos P, Rouvière JO, Knol LI, Ivens A, López-Onieva L, Estevez A, Garland W, Jensen TH, Heras SR, Macias S. BioRxiv (2025) Double-stranded RNA sensing is silenced during early development. Witteveldt J, Liu Z, Ariza-Cosano A, Ramierz C, Walters JL, Marchante PG, Maas L, Ivens A, Tebaldi T, Heras SR, Marks H, Macias S. BioRxiv (2025) (accepted in principle)DGCR8 haploinsufficiency leads to primate-specific RNA dysregulation and pluripotency defects. Colomer Boronat A, Knol LI, Peris G, Sanchez L, Peluso S, Tristan-Ramos P, Gazquez-Gutierrez A, Chin P, Gordon K, Barturen G, Hill RE, Garcia-Perez JL, IvensA, Heras SR*, Macias S* (2025) Nucleic Acids Research 53(6), gkaf197The molecular language of RNA 5'ends: guardians of RNA identity and immunity. Avila-Bonilla RG, Macias S (2024) RNA 30(4):327-336Antiviral defence mechanisms during early mammalian development. Mueller F, Witteveldt J, Macias S (2024) Viruses 19(2):173Sensing of transposable elements by the antiviral innate immune system. Gazquez-Gutierrez A, Witteveldt J, Heras SR, Macias S (2021) RNA 27(7):735-752 This article was published on 2026-04-23
