A Cellular Function for the RNA-Interference Enzyme Dicer in the Maturation of the let-7 Small Temporal RNA

G Hutvagner, J McLachlan, AE Pasquinelli, É Bálint… - Science, 2001 - science.org
G Hutvagner, J McLachlan, AE Pasquinelli, É Bálint, T Tuschl, PD Zamore
Science, 2001science.org
The 21-nucleotide small temporal RNA (stRNA) let-7 regulates developmental timing in
Caenorhabditis elegans and probably in other bilateral animals. We present in vivo and in
vitro evidence that in Drosophila melanogaster a developmentally regulated precursor RNA
is cleaved by an RNA interference-like mechanism to produce mature let-7 stRNA. Targeted
destruction in cultured human cells of the messenger RNA encoding the enzyme Dicer,
which acts in the RNA interference pathway, leads to accumulation of the let-7 precursor …
The 21-nucleotide small temporal RNA (stRNA) let-7regulates developmental timing in Caenorhabditis elegans and probably in other bilateral animals. We present in vivo and in vitro evidence that in Drosophila melanogaster a developmentally regulated precursor RNA is cleaved by an RNA interference-like mechanism to produce mature let-7 stRNA. Targeted destruction in cultured human cells of the messenger RNA encoding the enzyme Dicer, which acts in the RNA interference pathway, leads to accumulation of the let-7 precursor. Thus, the RNA interference and stRNA pathways intersect. Both pathways require the RNA-processing enzyme Dicer to produce the active small-RNA component that represses gene expression.
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