Transcriptional silencing and promoter methylation triggered by double-stranded RNA.

ABSTRACT: Double-stranded RNA induces a post-transcriptional gene silencing process, termed RNAi, in diverse organisms. It is shown here that transcriptional gene silencing accompanied by de novo methylation of a target promoter in plants can be triggered by a double-stranded RNA containing promoter sequences. Similar to the double-stranded RNA involved in RNAi, this promoter double-stranded RNA, which is synthesized in the nucleus, is partially cleaved into small RNAs approximately 23 nucleotides in length. Both transcriptional and post-transcriptional gene silencing can thus be initiated by double-stranded RNAs that enter the same degradation pathway. The results also implicate double-stranded RNA in directing DNA methylation. Different constructs designed to produce double-stranded promoter RNA i

SUBMITTER: Mette MF 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC302106 | biostudies-literature | 2000 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature