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An accelerated miRNA-based screen implicates Atf-3 in Drosophila odorant receptor expression
Shreelatha Bhat1, Walton D Jones1
1Lab for Behavioral Neurobiology, KAIST Biological Sciences, 291 Daehak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, 34141, Republic of Korea.
Scientific Reports
|February 6, 2016
Summary
Researchers identified a new gene, Atf3, involved in the Drosophila olfactory system. This discovery aids in understanding how specific odorant receptors are expressed in olfactory sensory neurons.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Genetics
- Molecular Biology
Background:
- The Drosophila olfactory system exhibits a highly stereotyped organization, with olfactory sensory neurons (OSNs) expressing specific odorant receptors (ORs) consistently located and projecting to defined glomeruli in the antennal lobe.
- While transcription factors are known to play a role in specifying OR expression and OSN identity, numerous other regulatory factors remain undiscovered.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and validate a novel two-tiered screening approach for identifying genes involved in olfactory system development and function.
- To uncover novel regulators of odorant receptor expression in Drosophila.
Main Methods:
- A primary screen utilized tissue-specific microRNA (miRNA) overexpression in a pooled manner to identify candidate genes.
- A secondary screen employed gene-specific RNA interference (RNAi) to validate findings from the miRNA screen, leveraging sequence-dependent miRNA-target interactions.
- This approach used miRNAs as tools to refine a traditional RNAi screen, mitigating challenges associated with genome-wide screening and potential non-biological miRNA-target relationships.
Main Results:
- The two-tiered screening strategy successfully identified a previously unrecognized role for the transcription factor Atf3.
- Atf3 was found to be involved in the regulation of odorant receptor Or47b expression within the Drosophila olfactory system.
Conclusions:
- The developed two-tiered screening method is effective for discovering genes regulating complex biological processes like neuronal identity and receptor expression.
- The identification of Atf3 highlights its importance in the combinatorial code governing olfactory receptor expression in Drosophila, opening new avenues for research into olfactory system development.
