| First Author | Sun YH | Year | 2021 |
| Journal | Nat Commun | Volume | 12 |
| Issue | 1 | Pages | 5970 |
| PubMed ID | 34645830 | Mgi Jnum | J:313684 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:6787522 | Doi | 10.1038/s41467-021-26233-8 |
| Citation | Sun YH, et al. (2021) Coupled protein synthesis and ribosome-guided piRNA processing on mRNAs. Nat Commun 12(1):5970 |
| abstractText | PIWI-interacting small RNAs (piRNAs) protect the germline genome and are essential for fertility. piRNAs originate from transposable element (TE) RNAs, long non-coding RNAs, or 3 untranslated regions (3 UTRs) of protein-coding messenger genes, with the last being the least characterized of the three piRNA classes. Here, we demonstrate that the precursors of 3 UTR piRNAs are full-length mRNAs and that post-termination 80S ribosomes guide piRNA production on 3 UTRs in mice and chickens. At the pachytene stage, when other co-translational RNA surveillance pathways are sequestered, piRNA biogenesis degrades mRNAs right after pioneer rounds of translation and fine-tunes protein production from mRNAs. Although 3 UTR piRNA precursor mRNAs code for distinct proteins in mice and chickens, they all harbor embedded TEs and produce piRNAs that cleave TEs. Altogether, we discover a function of the piRNA pathway in fine-tuning protein production and reveal a conserved piRNA biogenesis mechanism that recognizes translating RNAs in amniotes. |
