Functional analysis of small regulatory RNAs

The observation that PTGS and RNAi are associated with siRNAs initiated a totally new branch of research (Science, December 2002) that is based on the functional analysis of regulatory RNA. Today, mainly three types of regulatory RNAs, the siRNAs, the micro RNAs (miRNAs) and the short heterochromatic RNAs (shRNAs) are distinguished. At least miRNAs play and a subclass of siRNAs, the trans-acting short interfering RNAs (tasiRNAs) essential roles in natural gene regulation in plants. In the frame of the EU research project -Function of small regulatory RNAs across kingdoms (FOSRAK)- native siRNA/miRNA and their corresponding target sequences will be searched for. In this project we are focusing on the possible involvement of siRNA/miRNA in RNA-directed DNA methylation (RdDM).

In the frame of another EU project -Silencing RNAs: organisers and coordinators of complexity in eukaryotic organisms (SIROCCO) we will examine why RNAi differentially affects transgenes compared to endogenous sequence. For example, expression of a silencing inducer targeting an endogenous sequence does not result in de novo methylation of the endogene. Similarly, a process termed transitive silencing becomes activated upon targeting of a transgene. However, transitive silencing was not detected when the inducer corresponded to an endogene. Further details about the SIROCCO project and the AlPlanta contribution are available at AlPlanta-SIROCCO.

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