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Resources » Paper

Eric A Miska et al. (2005) International Worm Meeting "Functional analysis of the microRNA genes of C. elegans"

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    Publication type:
    Meeting_abstract
    WormBase ID:
    WBPaper00026085

    Eric A Miska, Ezequiel Alvarez-Saavedra, Allison Abbott, Andrew Hellman, Nelson Lau, David Bartel, Victor Ambros, & Bob Horvitz (2005). Functional analysis of the microRNA genes of C. elegans presented in International Worm Meeting. Unpublished information; cite only with author permission.

    The heterochronic genes lin-4 and let-7 encode small (21-22 nt) non-protein coding regulatory RNAs. Strains carrying a mutation in either of these genes are heterochronic, displaying retarded development with some cell lineages having an altered temporal pattern of cell division and differentiation. lin-4 and let-7 normally inhibit translation of target genes that when mutated lead to a phenotype opposite that of lin-4 and let-7 mutants: precocious development and early expression of certain paths of cell division and differentiation. More recently, molecular and bioinformatic approaches have identified many genes encoding small RNAs in C. elegans, Drosophila and mammals. All of these genes encode 21-25 nt RNAs derived from longer transcripts that contain partially double-stranded RNAs. These small RNAs, termed microRNAs (miRNAs), define a large, new class. To understand the biology of the C. elegans microRNA genes, we decided to combine the generation of loss-of-function mutants with GFP expression studies and target prediction using bioinformatics. We have generated deletion strains corresponding to 92 microRNAs, covering the majority of known microRNA genes. We will present an overview of the classes of mutant phenotypes we have observed. (for information about the mir-35 and the let-7 families of microRNAs, see also abstracts by Alvarez-Saavedra et al. and Abbott et al.). One focus will be the issue of redundancy within families of microRNA genes. This study represents the first comprehensive analysis of microRNA function.

    Authors: Eric A Miska, Ezequiel Alvarez-Saavedra, Allison Abbott, Andrew Hellman, Nelson Lau, David Bartel, Victor Ambros, Bob Horvitz

    Affiliations:
    - Dept. Genetics, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
    - HHMI, Dept. Biology, MIT, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
    - Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research and Dept. Biology, MITCambridge, MA 02142, USA
    - Gurdon Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom


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