Title |
Endogenous RNA interference is driven by copy number
|
---|---|
Published in |
eLife, February 2014
|
DOI | 10.7554/elife.01581 |
Pubmed ID | |
Authors |
Cristina Cruz, Jonathan Houseley |
Abstract |
A plethora of non-protein coding RNAs are produced throughout eukaryotic genomes, many of which are transcribed antisense to protein-coding genes and could potentially instigate RNA interference (RNAi) responses. Here we have used a synthetic RNAi system to show that gene copy number is a key factor controlling RNAi for transcripts from endogenous loci, since transcripts from multi-copy loci form double stranded RNA more efficiently than transcripts from equivalently expressed single-copy loci. Selectivity towards transcripts from high-copy DNA is therefore an emergent property of a minimal RNAi system. The ability of RNAi to selectively degrade transcripts from high-copy loci would allow suppression of newly emerging transposable elements, but such a surveillance system requires transcription. We show that low-level genome-wide pervasive transcription is sufficient to instigate RNAi, and propose that pervasive transcription is part of a defense mechanism capable of directing a sequence-independent RNAi response against transposable elements amplifying within the genome. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.01581.001. |
X Demographics
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
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United Kingdom | 1 | 25% |
United States | 1 | 25% |
Unknown | 2 | 50% |
Demographic breakdown
Type | Count | As % |
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Scientists | 2 | 50% |
Members of the public | 2 | 50% |
Mendeley readers
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
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United Kingdom | 2 | 2% |
Netherlands | 1 | 1% |
France | 1 | 1% |
Germany | 1 | 1% |
South Africa | 1 | 1% |
Iran, Islamic Republic of | 1 | 1% |
Spain | 1 | 1% |
United States | 1 | 1% |
Unknown | 90 | 91% |
Demographic breakdown
Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
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Student > Ph. D. Student | 31 | 31% |
Researcher | 28 | 28% |
Student > Master | 13 | 13% |
Student > Bachelor | 5 | 5% |
Professor | 4 | 4% |
Other | 11 | 11% |
Unknown | 7 | 7% |
Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 62 | 63% |
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology | 23 | 23% |
Business, Management and Accounting | 1 | 1% |
Computer Science | 1 | 1% |
Immunology and Microbiology | 1 | 1% |
Other | 3 | 3% |
Unknown | 8 | 8% |