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Updated: Jul 10, 2025

Protein Extract Preparation and Co-immunoprecipitation from Caenorhabditis elegans
Published on: May 23, 2020
Beyond Loading: Functions of Plant ARGONAUTE Proteins
Chao Liang1, Xiaoliu Wang1, Hualong He1
1Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Plant Epigenetics, College of Life Sciences and Oceanography, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, China.
Abstract:
ARGONAUTE (AGO) proteins are key components of the RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC) that mediates gene silencing in eukaryotes. Small-RNA (sRNA) cargoes are selectively loaded into different members of the AGO protein family and then target complementary sequences to in-duce transcriptional repression, mRNA cleavage, or translation inhibition. Previous reviews have mainly focused on the traditional roles of AGOs in specific biological processes or on the molecular mechanisms of sRNA sorting. In this review, we summarize the biological significance of canonical sRNA loading, including the balance among distinct sRNA pathways, cross-regulation of different RISC activities during plant development and defense, and, especially, the emerging roles of AGOs in sRNA movement. We also discuss recent advances in novel non-canonical functions of plant AGOs. Perspectives for future functional studies of this evolutionarily conserved eukaryotic protein family will facilitate a more comprehensive understanding of the multi-faceted AGO proteins.
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