Repeat associated small RNAs vary among parents and following hybridization in maize.

ABSTRACT: Small RNAs (sRNAs) are hypothesized to contribute to hybrid vigor because they maintain genome integrity, contribute to genetic diversity, and control gene expression. We used Illumina sequencing to assess how sRNA populations vary between two maize inbred lines (B73 and Mo17) and their hybrid. We sampled sRNAs from the seedling shoot apex and the developing ear, two rapidly growing tissues that program the greater growth of maize hybrids. We found that parental differences in siRNAs primarily originate from repeat regions. Although the maize genome contains greater number and complexity of repeats compared with Arabidopsis or rice, we confirmed that, like these simpler plant genomes, 24-nt siRNAs whose abundance differs between maize parents also show a trend of down-regulation following

SUBMITTER: Barber WT 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3387101 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature