The Genomic Origins of Small Mitochondrial RNAs: Are They Transcribed by the Mitochondrial DNA or by Mitochondrial Pseudogenes within the Nucleus (NUMTs)?

ABSTRACT: Several studies have linked mitochondrial genetic variation to phenotypic modifications; albeit the identity of the mitochondrial polymorphisms involved remains elusive. The search for these polymorphisms led to the discovery of small noncoding RNAs, which appear to be transcribed by the mitochondrial DNA ("small mitochondrial RNAs"). This contention is, however, controversial because the nuclear genome of most animals harbors mitochondrial pseudogenes (NUMTs) of identical sequence to regions of mtDNA, which could alternatively represent the source of these RNAs. To discern the likely contributions of the mitochondrial and nuclear genome to transcribing these small mitochondrial RNAs, we leverage data from six vertebrate species exhibiting markedly different levels of NUMT sequence. We exp

SUBMITTER: Pozzi A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6619488 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature