Abstract / Description of output
Micro-RNAs (miRNA) represent a large class of small RNAs that regulate gene expression at the post-transcriptional level. Several hundred miRNA sequences are now known and are highly conserved in multicellular plants and animals. Many are tissue specific and are known to regulate developmental events. We have initiated a project to identify miRNAs involved in gonadal development in the chick. We generated and sequenced miRNA libraries from RNA isolated from the developing ovaries and testes. We identified a large number of different miRNAs, of which approximately 40% are entirely novel miRNAs that have not been previously reported in any species. The frequency of observation of each miRNA sequence was compared in male and female libraries. As expected, the majority (95%) of all miRNAs identified are present at similar levels in male and female libraries, with the remainder expressed in a sexually dimorphic fashion: between 2 and 19 fold higher in either males or females. We believe that these sexually dimorphic miRNAs are involved in the structural and functional development of the gonads. Detailed expression profiles throughout gonadal development have been obtained for all sexually dimorphic miRNAs and we are currently assessing the roles of these miRNA by depleting levels of endogenous miRNAs in developing male and female chick embryos.
Original language | Undefined/Unknown |
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Pages (from-to) | S54, abstract 01-P012 |
Journal | Mechanisms of Development |
Volume | 126 |
Issue number | Suppt. 1 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2009 |
Event | 16th International Society of Developmental Biologists Congress 2009 - Edinburgh, United Kingdom Duration: 6 Sept 2009 → 10 Sept 2009 |