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RNA silencing

Diced defence

RNA silencing allows cells to block invading viruses or mobile DNAs. An RNA-cleaving enzyme involved in the first step of silencing has now been identified.

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Figure 1: According to one model for RNA silencing, there are two stages during which RNA is cleaved.

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Correspondence to David Baulcombe.

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Baulcombe, D. Diced defence. Nature 409, 295–296 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1038/35053256

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