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Updated: Jul 10, 2026

Protein Extract Preparation and Co-immunoprecipitation from Caenorhabditis elegans
Published on: May 23, 2020
Proteomic and functional analysis of Argonaute-containing mRNA-protein complexes in human cells
Julia Höck1, Lasse Weinmann, Christine Ender
1Laboratory of RNA Biology, Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, Am Klopferspitz 18, 82152 Martinsried, Germany.
Abstract:
Members of the Argonaute (Ago) protein family associate with small RNAs and have important roles in RNA silencing. Here, we analysed Ago1- and Ago2-containing protein complexes in human cells. Separation of Ago-associated messenger ribonucleoproteins (mRNPs) showed that Ago1 and Ago2 reside in three complexes with distinct Dicer and RNA-induced silencing complex activities. A comprehensive proteomic analysis of Ago-containing mRNPs identified a large number of proteins involved in RNA metabolism. By using co-immunoprecipitation experiments followed by RNase treatment, we biochemically mapped interactions within Ago mRNPs. Using reporter assays and knockdown experiments, we showed that the putative RNA-binding protein RBM4 is required for microRNA-guided gene regulation.
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