Roles of MIWI, MILI and PLD6 in small RNA regulation in mouse growing oocytes.

ABSTRACT: The mouse PIWI-interacting RNA (piRNA) pathway produces a class of 26-30-nucleotide (nt) small RNAs and is essential for spermatogenesis and retrotransposon repression. In oocytes, however, its regulation and function are poorly understood. In the present study, we investigated the consequences of loss of piRNA-pathway components in growing oocytes. When MILI (or PIWIL2), a PIWI family member, was depleted by gene knockout, almost all piRNAs disappeared. This severe loss of piRNA was accompanied by an increase in transcripts derived from specific retrotransposons, especially IAPs. MIWI (or PIWIL1) depletion had a smaller effect. In oocytes lacking PLD6 (or ZUCCHINI or MITOPLD), a mitochondrial nuclease/phospholipase involved in piRNA biogenesis in male germ cells, the piRNA level was decre

SUBMITTER: Kabayama Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5435931 | biostudies-literature | 2017 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature