Epididymis-specific RNase A family genes regulate fertility and small RNA processing.

ABSTRACT: Sperm small RNAs are implicated in intergenerational transmission of paternal environmental effects. Small RNAs generated by cleavage of tRNAs, known as tRNA fragments (tRFs), are an abundant class of RNAs in mature sperm, and can be modulated by environmental conditions. The ribonuclease(s) responsible for the biogenesis of tRFs in the male reproductive tract remains unknown. Angiogenin, a member of the Ribonuclease A superfamily (RNase A), cleaves tRNAs to generate tRFs in response to cellular stress. Four paralogs of Angiogenin, namely Rnase9, Rnase10, Rnase11, and Rnase12, are specifically expressed in the epididymis-a long, convoluted tubule where sperm mature and acquire fertility and motility. The biological functions of these genes remain largely unknown. Here,

SUBMITTER: Shaffer JF 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11383283 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature