Small RNA methylation in Caenorhabditis elegans
| dc.contributor.author | Svendsen, Joshua, author | |
| dc.contributor.author | Montgomery, Taiowa A., advisor | |
| dc.contributor.author | Wilusz, Carol J., committee member | |
| dc.contributor.author | Nishimura, Erin Osborne, committee member | |
| dc.contributor.author | LaRocca, Thomas J., committee member | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2020-06-22T11:54:01Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2020-06-22T11:54:01Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2020 | |
| dc.description | Zip file contains supplementary tables. | |
| dc.description.abstract | Eukaryotes employ small RNAs and RNA interference (RNAi) for such diverse tasks as regulating gene expression, suppressing viral infections, and defending their genomes from foreign or parasitic sequences such as pseudogenes or transposons. In the germlines of animals, piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) target and silence sequences such as these to ensure that genetic information passes from one generation to the next intact. For many animals, piRNAs must be methylated at their 3' ends to protect them from degradation, and loss of stable piRNAs results in sterility. In this study, we identify a role for piRNA methylation in maintaining germline integrity in C. elegans. We also show that methylation is important for piRNA stability in worm embryos but dispensable in the adult germline. Further, we identify additional classes of methylated small RNAs: exogenous primary short interfering RNAs (siRNAs) and a subpopulation of micro RNAs (miRNAs), as well as characterizing factors that influence which small RNAs are methylated. Finally, we provide a brief review of recent advances in the field of piRNA biology that detail the rules governing piRNA targeting and a means by which endogenous C. elegans genes avoid silencing by the piRNA-dependent RNAi pathway. | |
| dc.format.medium | born digital | |
| dc.format.medium | doctoral dissertations | |
| dc.format.medium | ZIP | |
| dc.format.medium | XLSX | |
| dc.identifier | Svendsen_colostate_0053A_16055.pdf | |
| dc.identifier.uri | https://hdl.handle.net/10217/208597 | |
| dc.language | English | |
| dc.language.iso | eng | |
| dc.publisher | Colorado State University. Libraries | |
| dc.relation.ispartof | 2020- | |
| dc.rights | Copyright and other restrictions may apply. User is responsible for compliance with all applicable laws. For information about copyright law, please see https://libguides.colostate.edu/copyright. | |
| dc.subject | germline immortality | |
| dc.subject | piRNA | |
| dc.subject | methylation | |
| dc.subject.lcsh | RNA interference | |
| dc.subject.lcsh | Caenorhabditis elegans | |
| dc.subject.lcsh | RNA | |
| dc.title | Small RNA methylation in Caenorhabditis elegans | |
| dc.type | Text | |
| dcterms.rights.dpla | This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights (https://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/). You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s). | |
| thesis.degree.discipline | Cell and Molecular Biology | |
| thesis.degree.grantor | Colorado State University | |
| thesis.degree.level | Doctoral | |
| thesis.degree.name | Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) |