Identification, expression, and molecular evolution of microRNAs in the "living fossil" Triops cancriformis (tadpole shrimp).

ABSTRACT: MicroRNAs have been identified and analyzed in various model species, but an investigation of miRNAs in nonmodel species is required for a more complete understanding of miRNA evolution. In this study, we investigated the miRNAs of the nonmodel species Triops cancriformis (tadpole shrimp), a "living fossil," whose morphological form has not changed in almost 200 million years. Dramatic ontogenetic changes occur during its development. To clarify the evolution of miRNAs, we comparatively analyzed its miRNAs and the components of its RNAi machinery. We used deep sequencing to analyze small RNA libraries from the six different developmental stages of T. cancriformis (egg, first-fourth instars, and adult), and also analyzed its genomic DNA with deep sequencing. We identified 180 miRNAs (87 con

SUBMITTER: Ikeda KT 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4338350 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature