Most Caenorhabditis elegans microRNAs are individually not essential for development or viability
In: PLoS Genetics, Jg. 3 (2005), Heft 12, p e215, S. e215
Online
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Zugriff:
MicroRNAs (miRNAs), a large class of short noncoding RNAs found in many plants and animals, often act to post-transcriptionally inhibit gene expression. We report the generation of deletion mutations in 87 miRNA genes in Caenorhabditis elegans, expanding the number of mutated miRNA genes to 95, or 83% of known C. elegans miRNAs. We find that the majority of miRNAs are not essential for the viability or development of C. elegans, and mutations in most miRNA genes do not result in grossly abnormal phenotypes. These observations are consistent with the hypothesis that there is significant functional redundancy among miRNAs or among gene pathways regulated by miRNAs. This study represents the first comprehensive genetic analysis of miRNA function in any organism and provides a unique, permanent resource for the systematic study of miRNAs.
Author Summary MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are tiny endogenous RNAs that regulate gene expression in plants and animals. Individual miRNAs have important roles in development, immunity, and cancer. Although the investigation of miRNA function is of great importance, to date few miRNAs have been studied in the intact organism because of a lack of mutants in which specific miRNAs have been inactivated. Here we describe a collection of loss-of-function mutants representing the majority of all known miRNA genes in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. This study identifies a new role for miRNAs in C. elegans and also demonstrates that most miRNAs are not essential for viability or development. Our findings suggest that many miRNAs act redundantly with other miRNAs or other pathways. We expect that this collection of miRNA mutants will become a widely used resource to further our understanding of the biology of miRNAs.
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Most Caenorhabditis elegans microRNAs are individually not essential for development or viability
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Autor/in / Beteiligte Person: | Ambros, Victor R. ; Abbott, Allison L. ; H. Robert Horvitz ; Shannon M McGonagle ; Andrew B Hellman ; Lau, Nelson C. ; Miska, Eric A. ; Bartel, David P. ; Alvarez-Saavedra, Ezequiel |
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Zeitschrift: | PLoS Genetics, Jg. 3 (2005), Heft 12, p e215, S. e215 |
Veröffentlichung: | Public Library of Science (PLoS), 2005 |
Medientyp: | unknown |
ISSN: | 1553-7404 (print) ; 1553-7390 (print) |
DOI: | 10.1371/journal.pgen.0030215.eor |
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