Time-resolved small RNA transcriptomics of the ichthyosporean Sphaeroforma arctica

Area of Science:

• * Evolutionary biology and genomics
• * Holozoan and animal origins
• * Regulatory small RNA biology

Background:

• * Ichthyosporea are holozoans closely related to animals, offering insights into animal origins.
• * Sphaeroforma arctica, an ichthyosporean, possesses microRNAs (miRNAs) and processing machinery.
• * The discovery of miRNAs in S. arctica raises questions about their role in unicellular eukaryotes' development and differentiation.

Purpose of the Study:

• * To investigate the dynamics of miRNAs during the developmental cycle of Sphaeroforma arctica.
• * To explore the roles of regulatory small RNAs in unicellular eukaryotes' cell development and differentiation.
• * To provide a comprehensive, time-resolved small RNA transcriptome dataset for S. arctica.

Main Methods:

• * Collected time-resolved small RNA transcriptomes from S. arctica across its entire life cycle.
• * Utilized Illumina sequencing with high temporal resolution and sequencing depth.
• * Generated data from two independent biological replicates, linked to prior mRNA-seq data.

Main Results:

• * Generated a high-resolution, time-resolved small RNA transcriptome dataset for S. arctica.
• * Enabled discovery of potentially functionally relevant small RNAs during the organism's life cycle.
• * Facilitated direct cross-functional analyses with existing mRNA-seq data.

Conclusions:

• * The study provides valuable data for understanding miRNA roles in early animal evolution.
• * The comprehensive dataset aids in exploring regulatory small RNA functions in unicellular development.
• * This research enhances our understanding of the evolutionary transition to multicellularity.