MicroRNA MIMIC binding sites: Minor flanking nucleotide alterations can strongly impact MIMIC silencing efficacy in Arabidopsis.

ABSTRACT: In plants, microRNA (miRNA) target MIMICs (MIMs) have been widely used to inhibit miRNA function. They are based on the Arabidopsis INSENSITIVE TO PHOSPATE STARVATION 1 (IPS1) gene that corresponds to a non-coding RNA containing a miR399 binding site that can be modified to sequester and inhibit any miRNA of interest. However, the efficacy of miRNA inhibition of these different MIMs can vary greatly. Using MIMs that have strong efficacy (MIM159) and poor efficacy (MIM165), we investigate the underlying cause of this variation. Firstly, sequence alignments of IPS1 homologs from the Brassicaceae identified a highly conserved sequence immediately downstream of the miRNA binding site. Mutating this sequence in the context of

SUBMITTER: Wong G 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6508833 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature