Genes and mechanisms related to RNA interference regulate expression of the small temporal RNAs that control C. elegans developmental timing

Grishok, Alla
Pasquinelli, Amy E.
Conte, Darryl, Jr.
Li, Na
Parrish, Susan
Ha, Ilho
Baillie, David L.
Fire, Andrew Z.
Ruvkun, Gary
Mello, Craig C.

Open link

Publication date

July 2001

DOI

10.1016/S0092-8674(01)00431-7

Publisher

Elsevier BV

ISSN

0092-8674

Citation count (estimate)

1488

Abstract

RNAi is a gene-silencing phenomenon triggered by double-stranded (ds) RNA and involves the generation of 21 to 26 nt RNA segments that guide mRNA destruction. In Caenorhabditis elegans, lin-4 and let-7 encode small temporal RNAs (stRNAs) of 22 nt that regulate stage-specific development. Here we show that inactivation of genes related to RNAi pathway genes, a homolog of Drosophila Dicer (dcr-1), and two homologs of rde-1 (alg-1 and alg-2), cause heterochronic phenotypes similar to lin-4 and let-7 mutations. Further we show that dcr-1, alg-1, and alg-2 are necessary for the maturation and activity of the lin-4 and let-7 stRNAs. Our findings suggest that a common processing machinery generates guide RNAs that mediate both RNAi and endogenous ...