Discrete Small RNA-Generating Loci as Master Regulators of Transposon Activity in Drosophila
Abstract
Drosophila Piwi-family proteins have been implicated in transposon control. Here, we examine piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) associated with each Drosophila Piwi protein and find that Piwi and Aubergine bind RNAs that are predominantly antisense to transposons, whereas Ago3 complexes contain predominantly sense piRNAs. As in mammals, the majority of Drosophila piRNAs are derived from discrete genomic loci. These loci comprise mainly defective transposon sequences, and some have previously been identified as master regulators of transposon activity. Our data suggest that heterochromatic piRNA loci interact with potentially active, euchromatic transposons to form an adaptive system for transposon control. Complementary relationships between sense and antisense piRNA populations suggest an amplification loop wherein each piRNA-directed cleavage event generates the 5′ end of a new piRNA. Thus, sense piRNAs, formed following cleavage of transposon mRNAs may enhance production of antisense piRNAs, complementary to active elements, by directing cleavage of transcripts from master control loci.
Additional Information
© 2007 Elsevier Inc. Under an Elsevier user license. Received 23 October 2006, Revised 8 December 2006, Accepted 19 January 2007, Available online 8 March 2007. We thank members of the Hannon laboratory for helpful discussions and support. Ahmet Denli (CSHL) provided antibodies, and Stuart Shuman (MSKCC) provided the expression vector for Rnl2. We thank Andrew Olson and Ted Roeder for bioinformatic support and Stephen Hearn (CSHL) for assistance with confocal microscopy. J.B. and A.S. are supported by fellowships from the Ernst Schering Foundation. A.A. is supported by a fellowship from the CSHL Association. M.D. is an Engelhorn Scholar of the Watson School of Biological Sciences. G.J.H. is an investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. This work was supported by grants from the N.I.H. (G.J.H.). Accession Numbers: The GenBank accession number for Ago3 in this paper is EF211827. The GEO accession numbers for all piRNAs from this study are GSE6734, GSM154618, GSM154620, GSM154621, and GSM154622.Attached Files
Supplemental Material - 1-s2.0-S0092867407002577-mmc1.pdf
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Additional details
- Eprint ID
- 95370
- Resolver ID
- CaltechAUTHORS:20190509-101139052
- Ernst Schering Foundation
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI)
- NIH
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2019-05-09Created from EPrint's datestamp field
- Updated
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2021-11-16Created from EPrint's last_modified field