Project description:MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are important post-transcriptional regulators of plant development. In soybean (Glycine max), an important edible oil crop, valuable lipids are synthesized and stored in the cotyledons during embryogenesis .This storage lipids are used as energy source of the emerging seeds, during the germination procces. Until now, there are no microRNAs related to lipid metabolism in soybean or any other plant. This work aims to describe the miRNAome of germinating seeds of B. napus by identifying plant-conserved and novel miRNAs and comparing miRNA abundance in mature versus germinating seeds. A total of 183 familes were detected through a computational analysis of a large number of reads obtained from deep sequencing from two small RNA libraries of (i) pooled germintaing seeds stages and (ii) mature soybean seeds. We have found 39 new mirna precursors which produce 41 new mature forms. The present work also have identified isomiRNAs and mirnas offset (moRNAs). This work presents a comprehensive study of the miRNA transcriptome of soybean germinating seeds and will provide a basis for future research on more targeted studies of individual miRNAs and their functions in lipid consumption in development soybean seeds.
Project description:The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of dietary plant and animal proteins on gut metabolism and markers for colorectal cancer as well as blood protein metabolites and markers for type 2 diabetes in healthy adults. The study participants will be stratified into three groups with different protein composition in diets: 1) animal 70%/plant 30%; 2) animal 50%/plant 50% and 3) animal 30%/plant 70%. The participants will get part of their diet as ready foods or raw material to promote their compliance. The participants will also get personal advice for their diets. Blood, stool and urine samples will be collected in the beginning and in the end of the 12 week intervention, as well as phenotype measures like BMI, blood pressure and body composition. The participants will also fill food diary before and in the end of the intervention.
Project description:MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are important post-transcriptional regulators of plant development and seed formation. In Brassica napus, an important edible oil crop, valuable lipids are synthesized and stored in specific seed tissues during embryogenesis. The miRNA transcriptome of B. napus is currently poorly characterized, especially at different seed developmental stages. This work aims to describe the miRNAome of developing seeds of B. napus by identifying plant-conserved and novel miRNAs and comparing miRNA abundance in mature versus developing seeds. A total of 62 miRNA families were detected through a computational analysis of a large number of reads obtained from deep sequencing two small RNA and two RNA-seq libraries of (i) pooled immature developing stages and (ii) mature B. napus seeds. Among these miRNA families, 17 families are currently known to exist in B. napus; additionally, 32 families not reported in B. napus but conserved in other plant species were identified by alignment with known plant mature miRNAs. The contigs from the assembled mRNA-seq data allowed for a search for putative new precursors and led to the identification of 13 novel miRNA families. Differential expression between the libraries was determined through a statistical analysis of normalized miRNA reads and revealed several miRNAs and isomiRNAs that were more abundant during the developing stages. The predicted miRNA target genes encode a broad range of proteins related to seed development and energy storage. This work presents a comprehensive study of the miRNA transcriptome of B. napus seeds and will provide a basis for future research on more targeted studies of individual miRNAs and their functions in embryogenesis, seed maturation and lipid accumulation in B. napus.