PIWI proteins and Piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) have established and conserved roles in repressing transposable elements (TEs) in the germline of animals. However, in several biological contexts, a large proportion of piRNAs are not related to TE sequences and, accordingly, functions for piRNAs and PIWI proteins that are independent of TE regulation have been identified. This aspect of piRNA biology is expanding rapidly. Indeed, recent reports have revealed the role of piRNAs in the regulation of endogenous gene expression programs in germ cells, as well as in somatic tissues, challenging dogma in the piRNA field. In this Review, we focus on recent data addressing the biological and developmental functions of piRNAs, highlighting their roles in embryonic patterning, germ cell specification, stem cell biology, neuronal activity and metabolism.
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 3. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 16 October 2018.
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#21,427,613
of 34,400,738 outputs
Outputs from Development (09501991)
#8,709
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Outputs of similar age
#212,754
of 376,802 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Development (09501991)
#53
of 79 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 34,400,738 research outputs across all sources so far. This one is in the 37th percentile – i.e., 37% of other outputs scored the same or lower than it.
So far Altmetric has tracked 11,545 research outputs from this source. They typically receive more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 8.7. This one is in the 23rd percentile – i.e., 23% of its peers scored the same or lower than it.
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We're also able to compare this research output to 79 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one is in the 32nd percentile – i.e., 32% of its contemporaries scored the same or lower than it.
