Expression profiling and cross-species RNA interference (RNAi) of desiccation-induced transcripts in the anhydrobiotic nematode Aphelenchus avenae.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Some organisms can survive extreme desiccation by entering a state of suspended animation known as anhydrobiosis. The free-living mycophagous nematode Aphelenchus avenae can be induced to enter anhydrobiosis by pre-exposure to moderate reductions in relative humidity (RH) prior to extreme desiccation. This preconditioning phase is thought to allow modification of the transcriptome by activation of genes required for desiccation tolerance.

Results

To identify such genes, a panel of expressed sequence tags (ESTs) enriched for sequences upregulated in A. avenae during preconditioning was created. A subset of 30 genes with significant matches in databases, together with a number of apparently novel sequences, were chosen for further study. Several of the recognisable

SUBMITTER: Reardon W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2825203 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature