The NIH Extracellular RNA Communication Consortium

The Extracellular RNA (exRNA) Communication Consortium, funded as an initiative of the NIH Common Fund, represents a consortium of investigators assembled to address the critical issues in the exRNA research arena. The overarching goal is to generate a multi-component community resource for sharing fundamental scientific discoveries, protocols, and innovative tools and technologies. The key initiatives include (a) generating a reference catalogue of exRNAs present in body fluids of normal healthy individuals that would facilitate disease diagnosis and therapies, (b) defining the fundamental principles of exRNA biogenesis, distribution, uptake, and function, as well as development of molecular tools, technologies, and imaging modalities to enable these studies,