MIWI and piRNA-mediated cleavage of messenger RNAs in mouse testes.

The piRNA machinery is known for its role in mediating epigenetic silencing of transposons. Recent studies suggest that this function also involves piRNA-guided cleavage of transposon-derived transcripts. As many piRNAs also appear to have the capacity to target diverse mRNAs, this raises the intriguing possibility that piRNAs may act extensively as siRNAs to degrade specific mRNAs.

LncRNA profile study reveals a three-lncRNA signature associated with the survival of patients with oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Background: Oesophageal cancer is one of the most deadly forms of cancer worldwide. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are often found to have important regulatory roles.

Objective: To assess the lncRNA expression profile of oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and identify prognosis-related lncRNAs.

Recipe for a busy bee: microRNAs in Honey Bee caste determination.

Social caste determination in the honey bee is assumed to be determined by the dietary status of the young larvae and translated into physiological and epigenetic changes through nutrient-sensing pathways. We have employed Illumina/Solexa sequencing to examine the small RNA content in the bee larval food, and show that worker jelly is enriched in miRNA complexity and abundance relative to royal jelly. The miRNA levels in worker jelly were 7-215 fold higher than in royal jelly, and both jellies showed dynamic changes in miRNA content during the 4(th) to 6(th) day of larval development.

Experimental RNomics and genomic comparative analysis reveal a large group of species-specific small non-message RNAs in the silkworm Bombyx mori.

Accumulating evidences show that small non-protein coding RNAs (ncRNAs) play important roles in development, stress response and other cellular processes. The silkworm is an important model for studies on insect genetics and control of lepidopterous pests. Here, we have performed the first systematic identification and analysis of intermediate size ncRNAs (50-500 nt) in the silkworm.