A work led by The Small Biosystems Lab, has studied the hybridisation dynamics of long RNA hairpins with many intermediate states in nonequilibrium unzipping experiments. Stem-loops formation appears as a key mechanism driving the formation of the native state and may contribute to explain the wide range of behaviours observed in RNA folding.
Stem–loop formation drives RNA folding in mechanical unzipping experiments. P. Rissone, C.V. Bizarro, F. Ritort. PNAS January 18, 2022 119 (3) e2025575119