A group of scientists led by Professor YU Jun at Beijing Institute of Genomics (BIG), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), discovered transposable-element (TE)-associated small RNAs in Bombyx mori genome.

The team has previously constructed a small non-coding RNA library of B. mori and deeply sampled it using the ABI SOLiD platform. Their current analysis discovered 287 new miRNAs including conserved and species-specific ones. In the study, they examined the sequencing data to identify TE-associated small RNAs as well as their potential functions in B. mori genome.

The results has shown that a majority of TE-associated small RNAs displays remarkable characteristics and can be considered as latent regulators of corresponding transposons. As Dr. CAI Yimei concluded, different TEs may be controlled by different small RNAs and even a single TE gene is capable of generating different products and may be regulated by different mechanisms. The findings have expanded the small RNA pool in B. mori genome and lead to new knowledge on the diversity and functional significance of TE-associated small RNAs.

 Base composition of TE-associated small RNAs(Image by CAI Yimei).

 Paper link: http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0036599

Contact: Prof. YU Jun　 

Email: junyu@big.ac.cn