A novel class of small RNAs bind to MILI protein in mouse testes

Aravin, A. A., Gaidatzis, D., Pfeffer, S., Lagos-Quintana, M., Landgraf, P., Iovino, N., Morris, P., Brownstein, M. J., Kuramochi-Miyagawa, S., Nakano, T., Chien, M. C., Russo, J. J., Ju, J. Y., Sheridan, R., Sander, C., Zavolan, M. , Tuschl, T. (July 2006) A novel class of small RNAs bind to MILI protein in mouse testes. Nature, 442 (7099). pp. 203-7. ISSN 1476-4687 (Electronic)

URL: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16751777
DOI: 10.1038/nature04916

Abstract

Small RNAs bound to Argonaute proteins recognize partially or fully complementary nucleic acid targets in diverse gene-silencing processes. A subgroup of the Argonaute proteins--known as the 'Piwi family'--is required for germ- and stem-cell development in invertebrates, and two Piwi members--MILI and MIWI--are essential for spermatogenesis in mouse. Here we describe a new class of small RNAs that bind to MILI in mouse male germ cells, where they accumulate at the onset of meiosis. The sequences of the over 1,000 identified unique molecules share a strong preference for a 5' uridine, but otherwise cannot be readily classified into sequence families. Genomic mapping of these small RNAs reveals a limited number of clusters, suggesting that these RNAs are processed from long primary transcripts. The small RNAs are 26-31 nucleotides (nt) in length--clearly distinct from the 21-23 nt of microRNAs (miRNAs) or short interfering RNAs (siRNAs)--and we refer to them as 'Piwi-interacting RNAs' or piRNAs. Orthologous human chromosomal regions also give rise to small RNAs with the characteristics of piRNAs, but the cloned sequences are distinct. The identification of this new class of small RNAs provides an important starting point to determine the molecular function of Piwi proteins in mammalian spermatogenesis.

Item Type: Paper
Uncontrolled Keywords: Animals Animals Newborn Humans Male Mice Mice Inbred C57BL Multigene Family genetics Proteins metabolism RNA classification genetics metabolism Spermatogenesis genetics Testis metabolism Time Factors
Subjects: bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > annotation > map annotation
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > protein structure, function, modification > protein types > Piwi protein
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > annotation > sequence annotation
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > Mapping and Rendering > Sequence Rendering
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > protein structure, function, modification > protein types > argonaute proteins
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > DNA, RNA structure, function, modification > genes, structure and function > gene silencing
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > DNA, RNA structure, function, modification > piRNA
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > DNA, RNA structure, function, modification > sRNA
CSHL Authors:
Communities: CSHL labs > Hannon lab
Depositing User: CSHL Librarian
Date: 13 July 2006
Date Deposited: 20 Dec 2011 18:37
Last Modified: 12 Apr 2018 14:41
Related URLs:
URI: https://repository.cshl.edu/id/eprint/22751

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