Analysis of variation in PIWI-interacting RNA (piRNA) expression in testes of different mouse strains

Piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) are a class of small non-coding RNAs present in the germline of most animals which are responsible for silencing transposable elements (TEs) through base-pair complementarity. We performed an extensive study of the expression of piRNAs in the male germline of five inbred mouse strains. We tested for variation in piRNA expression between different mouse strains. Furthermore, we tested whether variation in transposon copies between mouse strains affects the expression of piRNAs. We analyzed piRNA expression from previously known piRNA clusters and also from piRNA clusters that we predicted de novo. The results, with the documented clusters as well as with the de novo ones show a significant correlation between piRNA differential expression and the different status of a very young retrotransposon, the murine intracisternal A-particle (IAP) in the strains being compared. We found that the presence of an IAP in the region being expressed, in just one of the strains, (±10kb) was highly correlated with differential expression of the cluster between both strains. To the best of our knowledge this is the most extensive study in which variation in piRNA clusters expression in testes between genetically diverse individuals has been reported in any mammalian species. This work suggests a mechanism for piRNA evolution and piRNA biogenesis through endogenous retrovirus insertions in genes and piRNA clusters.

Grantor dc:publisher

Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC)

Year dc:date.issued

2021

Author dc:creator

• Sierra Rodríguez, Pío Alberto

• piRNA
• transposons
• IAPs
• piRNAs
• transposones

Statement dc:rights

• CC BY-NC-ND

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/es/

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/10609/127428

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:openaccess.uoc.edu:10609/127428