Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 26, 2025
06:16
mirMachine: A One-Stop Shop for Plant miRNA Annotation
Published on: May 1, 2021
2.6K
Miniature Inverted-repeat Transposable Elements Drive Rapid MicroRNA Diversification in Angiosperms.
Zhonglong Guo1,2, Zheng Kuang3, Yihan Tao1
1State Key Laboratory of Protein and Plant Gene Research, School of Advanced Agricultural Sciences and School of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China.
Molecular Biology and Evolution
|October 12, 2022
Summary
Miniature inverted-repeat transposable elements (MITEs) convert into new microRNAs (miRNAs) in angiosperms. These MITE-derived miRNAs help plants adapt to environmental changes, driving rapid evolution of plant miRNA repertoires.
Area of Science:
- Plant molecular biology
- Genomics
- Evolutionary biology
Background:
- MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small RNAs regulating gene expression in plants.
- Genomic mechanisms for rapid plant miRNA evolution are not well understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify genomic sources of de novo miRNA evolution in plants.
- To investigate the role of miniature inverted-repeat transposable elements (MITEs) in generating new miRNAs.
Main Methods:
- Comparative genomic analysis of 8,649 miRNA loci across 21 plant species.
- Identification of miRNA origins, including gene duplications, retrotransposons, and MITEs.
- Analysis of MITE-miRNA target genes and their functions.
Main Results:
- MITEs are a major source of de novo miRNAs in angiosperms, unlike non-angiosperms.
- A transposition-transcription process converts MITEs into functional miRNAs (MITE-miRNAs).
- MITE-miRNAs target genes involved in environmental stimuli response, indicating a role in adaptation.
Conclusions:
- MITEs serve as a significant genomic source for rapid miRNA repertoire expansion in angiosperms.
- MITE-miRNA generation contributes to plant adaptation to environmental changes.
- This study reveals a novel mechanism for miRNA evolution in plants.
Related Concept Videos
02:57piRNA - Piwi-interacting RNAs
7.0K
PIWI-interacting RNAs, or piRNAs, are the most abundant short non-coding RNAs. More than 20,000 genes have been found in humans that code for piRNAs while only 2000 genes have been found for miRNAs. piRNAs can act at the transcriptional and post-transcriptional levels and have a vital role in silencing transposable elements present in germ cells. They are also involved in epigenetic silencing and activation. Previously, they were thought to function only in germ cells but new evidence suggests...
7.0K
02:13Overview of Transposition and Recombination
16.0K
Transposons make up a significant part of genomes of various organisms. Therefore, it is believed that transposition played a major evolutionary role in speciation by changing genome sizes and modifying gene expression patterns. For example, in bacteria, transposition can lead to conferring antibiotic resistance. Movement of transposable elements within the genetic pool of pathogenic bacteria can aid in transfer of antibiotic-resistant genetic elements. In eukaryotes, transposons can carry out...
16.0K
01:22MicroRNAs
3.1K
MicroRNA (miRNA) are short, regulatory RNA transcribed from introns (non-coding regions of a gene) or intergenic regions (stretches of DNA present between genes). Several processing steps are required to form biologically active, mature miRNA. The initial transcript, called primary miRNA (pri-mRNA), base-pairs with itself, forming a stem-loop structure. Within the nucleus, an endonuclease enzyme, called Drosha, shortens the stem-loop structure into hairpin-shaped pre-miRNA. After the pre-miRNA...
3.1K
01:23RNA Interference
26.3K
RNA interference (RNAi) is a process in which a small non-coding RNA molecule blocks the post-transcriptional expression of a gene by binding to its messenger RNA (mRNA) and preventing the protein from being translated.
This process occurs naturally in cells, often through the activity of genomically-encoded microRNAs. Researchers can take advantage of this mechanism by introducing synthetic RNAs to deactivate specific genes for research or therapeutic purposes. For example, RNAi could be used...
This process occurs naturally in cells, often through the activity of genomically-encoded microRNAs. Researchers can take advantage of this mechanism by introducing synthetic RNAs to deactivate specific genes for research or therapeutic purposes. For example, RNAi could be used...
26.3K
02:15Experimental RNAi
6.2K
RNA interference (RNAi) is a cellular mechanism that inhibits gene expression by suppressing its transcription or activating the RNA degradation process. The mechanism was discovered by Andrew Fire and Craig Mello in 1998 in plants. Today, it is observed in almost all eukaryotes, including protozoa, flies, nematodes, insects, parasites, and mammals. This precise cellular mechanism of gene silencing has been developed into a technique that provides an efficient way to identify and determine the...
6.2K
02:30siRNA - Small Interfering RNAs
16.9K
Small interfering RNAs, or siRNAs, are short regulatory RNA molecules that can silence genes post-transcriptionally, as well as the transcriptional level in some cases. siRNAs are important for protecting cells against viral infections and silencing transposable genetic elements.
In the cytoplasm, siRNA is processed from a double-stranded RNA, which comes from either endogenous DNA transcription or exogenous sources like a virus. This double-stranded RNA is then cleaved by the...
In the cytoplasm, siRNA is processed from a double-stranded RNA, which comes from either endogenous DNA transcription or exogenous sources like a virus. This double-stranded RNA is then cleaved by the...
16.9K