Article abstract
Nature Structural & Molecular Biology 16, 207 - 211 (2009)
Published online: 18 January 2009 | doi:10.1038/nsmb.1541
RDE-1 slicer activity is required only for passenger-strand cleavage during RNAi in Caenorhabditis elegans
Florian A Steiner1, Kristy L Okihara1, Suzanne W Hoogstrate1, Titia Sijen1,2,3 & René F Ketting1,3
Abstract
RNA interference (RNAi) is a process in which double-stranded RNA is cleaved into small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) that induce the destruction of homologous single-stranded mRNAs. Argonaute proteins are essential components of this silencing process; they bind siRNAs directly and can cleave RNA targets using a conserved RNase H motif. In Caenorhabditis elegans, the Argonaute protein RDE-1 has a central role in RNAi. In animals lacking RDE-1, the introduction of double-stranded RNA does not trigger any detectable level of RNAi. Here we show that RNase H activity of RDE-1 is required only for efficient removal of the passenger strand of the siRNA duplex and not for triggering the silencing response at the target-mRNA level. These results uncouple the role of the RDE-1 RNase H activity in small RNA maturation from its role in target-mRNA silencing in vivo.
- Hubrecht Institute, Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences & University Medical Centre Utrecht, Uppsalalaan 8, 3584 CT, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
- Present address: Netherlands Forensic Institute, P.O. Box 24044, 2490 AA, The Hague, The Netherlands.
- These authors contributed equally to this work.
Correspondence to: René F Ketting1,3 e-mail: r.ketting@niob.knaw.nl
MORE ARTICLES LIKE THIS
These links to content published by NPG are automatically generated.
NEWS AND VIEWS
'Arc' escorts siRNAs in heterochromatin assemblyNature Structural & Molecular Biology News and Views (01 Mar 2007)
RNA interference has second helpingsNature Biotechnology News and Views (01 Mar 2007)
See all 4 matches for News And ViewsRESEARCH
Structural features of small RNA precursors determine Argonaute loading in Caenorhabditis elegansNature Structural & Molecular Biology Article (01 Oct 2007)
See all 36 matches for Research
