Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 26, 2025

Use of Alu Element Containing Minigenes to Analyze Circular RNAs
Published on: March 10, 2020
Genetic compensation between ribosomal protein paralogs mediated by a cognate circular RNA
Amanda Yunn Ee Ng1, Seow Neng Chan2, Jun Wei Pek1
1Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, 1 Research Link National University of Singapore, Singapore 117604, Singapore; Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, 14 Science Drive Singapore 117543, Singapore.
Abstract:
Inter-regulation between related genes, such as ribosomal protein (RP) paralogs, has been observed to be important for genetic compensation and paralog-specific functions. However, how paralogs communicate to modulate their expression levels is unknown. Here, we report a circular RNA involved in the inter-regulation between RP paralogs RpL22 and RpL22-like during Drosophila spermatogenesis. Both paralogs are mutually regulated by the circular stable intronic sequence RNA (sisRNA) circRpL22(NE,3S) produced from the RpL22 locus. RpL22 represses itself and RpL22-like. Interestingly, circRpL22 binds to RpL22 to repress RpL22-like, but not RpL22, suggesting that circRpL22 modulates RpL22's function. circRpL22 is in turn controlled by RpL22-like, which regulates RpL22 binding to circRpL22 to indirectly modulate RpL22. This circRpL22-centric inter-regulatory circuit enables the loss of RpL22-like to be genetically compensated by RpL22 upregulation to ensure robust male germline development. Thus, our study identifies sisRNA as a possible mechanism of genetic crosstalk between paralogous genes.
Related Concept Videos
Ribosomal RNA Synthesis
Ribosome biogenesis begins with the synthesis of 5S and 45S pre-rRNAs by distinct RNA polymerases. The primary transcripts are extensively processed and modified before they are bound and folded by ribosomal proteins and assembly factors,...
Gene Families
Occasionally these regions can be adapted to take on new roles within the organism, becoming novel genes...
Ribosome Profiling
Applications of ribosome profiling
Ribosome profiling has many applications, including in vivo monitoring of translation inside a particular organ or tissue type and quantifying new protein synthesis levels.
The technique...
From DNA to Protein
Improving Translational Accuracy
Eukaryotic RNA Polymerases
All three eukaryotic RNAPs require specific transcription factors, of which the...

