Identification of differentially expressed miRNAs in mouse spinal cord development

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of non-coding, regulatory small RNAs of ∼22 nt. It was implicated that these small RNAs play critical roles in various important biological processes. During development, some miRNAs are specifically expressed in individual tissues and at particular developmental stages. Many miRNAs show distinct expression patterns in the development of central nervous system, including spinal cord. In this study, we first reported the miRNAs expression in the development of mouse spinal cord. Differentially expressed miRNAs in embryonic (day 13.5) and neonatal mice spinal cords were identified. The predicted target genes of the differentially expressed miRNAs were subject to gene ontology and KEGG pathway analysis, and several nervous development-related pathways were enriched, implying that these miRNAs may be involved in these pathways that regulate mouse spinal cord development.