Chondrocyte-specific microRNA-140 regulates endochondral bone development and targets Dnpep to modulate bone morphogenetic protein signaling.

ABSTRACT: MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play critical roles in a variety of biological processes in diverse organisms, including mammals. In the mouse skeletal system, a global reduction of miRNAs in chondrocytes causes a lethal skeletal dysplasia. However, little is known about the physiological roles of individual miRNAs in chondrocytes. The miRNA-encoding gene, Mir140, is evolutionarily conserved among vertebrates and is abundantly and almost exclusively expressed in chondrocytes. In this paper, we show that loss of Mir140 in mice causes growth defects of endochondral bones, resulting in dwarfism and craniofacial deformities. Endochondral bone development is mildly advanced due to accelerated hypertrophic differentiation of chondrocytes in Mir140-null mice. Comparison of profiles of RNA associated with Argo

SUBMITTER: Nakamura Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3133397 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature