[Guest Editorial] Special Issue on RNA-Based Catalysts that Revolutionized the Discovery of Bioactive Peptides

This special issue of the Israel Journal of Chemistry is in celebration of the Wolf Prize awarded to Hiroaki Suga in 2023 “for pioneering discoveries that illuminate the functions and pathological dysfunctions of RNA and proteins and for creating strategies to harness the capabilities of these biopolymers in new ways to ameliorate human diseases”. In this issue we collect contributions from former trainees, collaborators, and beyond to profile how his work has impacted the fields of bioorganic chemistry, synthetic biology, and drug discovery. Focusing on his development of RNA-based aminoacylation catalysts, his share of the prize “For developing RNA-based catalysts that revolutionized the discovery of bioactive peptides” is emphasised here in a collection of nine review articles and one research article that span aspects of oligonucleotide acylation catalysis, reprogramming of the genetic code, and applications of this in peptide drug discovery.