Diversity and expression of microRNAs in the filarial parasite, Brugia malayi
Authors
Poole, Catherine B.Gu, Weifeng
Kumar, Sanjay
Jin, Jingmin
Davis, Paul J.
Bauche, David
McReynolds, Larry A.
UMass Chan Affiliations
Program in Molecular MedicineDocument Type
Journal ArticlePublication Date
2014-05-16
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Human filarial parasites infect an estimated 120 million people in 80 countries worldwide causing blindness and the gross disfigurement of limbs and genitals. An understanding of RNA-mediated regulatory pathways in these parasites may open new avenues for treatment. Toward this goal, small RNAs from Brugia malayi adult females, males and microfilariae were cloned for deep-sequencing. From approximately 30 million sequencing reads, 145 miRNAs were identified in the B. malayi genome. Some microRNAs were validated using the p19 RNA binding protein and qPCR. B. malayi miRNAs segregate into 99 families each defined by a unique seed sequence. Sixty-one of the miRNA families are highly conserved with homologues in arthropods, vertebrates and helminths. Of those miRNAs not highly conserved, homologues of 20 B. malayi miRNA families were found in vertebrates. Nine B. malayi miRNA families appear to be filarial-specific as orthologues were not found in other organisms. The miR-2 family is the largest in B. malayi with 11 members. Analysis of the sequences shows that six members result from a recent expansion of the family. Library comparisons found that 1/3 of the B. malayi miRNAs are differentially expressed. For example, miR-71 is 5-7X more highly expressed in microfilariae than adults. Studies suggest that in C.elegans, miR-71 may enhance longevity by targeting the DAF-2 pathway. Characterization of B. malayi miRNAs and their targets will enhance our understanding of their regulatory pathways in filariads and aid in the search for novel therapeutics.Source
PLoS One. 2014 May 13;9(5):e96498. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0096498. eCollection 2014. Link to article on publisher's siteDOI
10.1371/journal.pone.0096498Permanent Link to this Item
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14038/30184PubMed ID
24824352Related Resources
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© 2014 Poole et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.Distribution License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.1371/journal.pone.0096498
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Except where otherwise noted, this item's license is described as © 2014 Poole et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">Creative Commons Attribution License</a>, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.