Non-coding RNA Expression is Synergistically modulated by Various Types of Epigenetic Modifications
It is well known that most of the mammalian genome is transcribed, producing large amounts of non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs). The two main types of ncRNA are micro RNAs (miRNAs) and long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs). MiRNAs are a recently discovered and well-characterized class of ncRNAs that are frequently dysregulated in different …
MicroRNA expression is regulated by DNA methylation: a complex cascade of gene regulation events
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are non-coding RNAs, roughly 22 nucleotides in size that are central and negative regulators of gene expression. They exert their functions through base-pairing with the 3’UTR of mRNAs and block expression at the transcriptional and post-transcriptional levels, depending on the perfect or imperfect match in sequences between miRNAs …
Don’t forget all that dad has done for you.. and your epigenome.. this father’s day!
In mammals, the recognition and fusion between the sperm from the father and the oocyte from the mother gives rise to offspring. Therefore, the production of functional, flagella-containing motile sperm is the prerequisite for successful fertilization in nature. In human females, there is typically only one oocyte ovulated during each …
The Expanding RNA Alphabet – Hydroxymethylation in RNA
Benjamin Delatte & François Fuks Contacts: B. Delatte (benche65@gmail.com), F. Fuks (ffuks@ulb.ac.be). Epigenetic studies have explored DNA modifications in relation to key biological processes such as gene expression, parasitic elements silencing, or genome stability. Of these, methylation of the 5th carbon of cytosine (referred here as 5mC) has been extensively …
A new role for miRNAs: Transcriptional Gene Activation by Nuclear Activating miRNA (namiRNAs)
MiRNAs are small non-coding RNAs that carry diverse epigenetic and post-transcriptional mechanisms. Primarily, they have been studied for their function as a negative gene expression regulator, leaving their roles in activating gene expression poorly understood. Xiao et al.reports that miRNAs in the nucleus mediate gene activation by interacting with enhancer elements …
To splice or to missplice: Genome-wide alternative splicing changes occurring during plant virus infection
Kranthi K. Mandadi Department of Plant Pathology & Microbiology, Texas A&M AgriLife Research & Extension Center, 2415 E. Highway 83, Weslaco, TX 78596 Alternative splicing is a eukaryotic post-transcriptional biological process that promotes transcriptome and proteome diversity, and influences growth, development and response to stress. For example, in humans, ~95% …
Epigenetics of myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1): CpG methylation profile of the DMPK gene
Myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1, Steinert’s disease, OMIM 160900) is the most common form of adult-onset muscular dystrophy in humans, characterized by myotonia (prolonged muscle contractions), muscle weakness, cataract, cardiac disease, gastrointestinal abnormalities, and central nervous system dysfunction.1 The clinical spectrum of DM1 patients is highly variable including congenital and …
Enhancer RNAs as molecular traps
Results from ENCODE released in 2007 suggested that 80% of the human genome plays a role in at least one RNA biochemical and/or chromatin modelling event; much higher than previously understood. More importantly, a significant portion of this active genome is transcribed into RNA, without any known corresponding functional protein. …