Microguards and micromessengers of the genome

Green, Darrell ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0217-3322, Dalmay, Tamas ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1492-5429 and Chapman, Tracey (2016) Microguards and micromessengers of the genome. Heredity, 116. pp. 125-134. ISSN 0018-067X

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Abstract

The regulation of gene expression is of fundamental importance to maintain organismal function and integrity and requires a multifaceted and highly ordered sequence of events. The cyclic nature of gene expression is known as ‘transcription dynamics’. Disruption or perturbation of these dynamics can result in significant fitness costs arising from genome instability, accelerated ageing and disease. We review recent research that supports the idea that an important new role for small RNAs, particularly microRNAs (miRNAs), is in protecting the genome against short-term transcriptional fluctuations, in a process we term ‘microguarding’. An additional emerging role for miRNAs is as ‘micromessengers’—through alteration of gene expression in target cells to which they are trafficked within microvesicles. We describe the scant but emerging evidence that miRNAs can be moved between different cells, individuals and even species, to exert biologically significant responses. With these two new roles, miRNAs have the potential to protect against deleterious gene expression variation from perturbation and to themselves perturb the expression of genes in target cells. These interactions between cells will frequently be subject to conflicts of interest when they occur between unrelated cells that lack a coincidence of fitness interests. Hence, there is the potential for miRNAs to represent both a means to resolve conflicts of interest, as well as instigate them. We conclude by exploring this conflict hypothesis, by describing some of the initial evidence consistent with it and proposing new ideas for future research into this exciting topic.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Norwich Medical School Faculty of Science Faculty of Science > School of Biological Sciences
UEA Research Groups:	Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Plant Sciences Faculty of Science > Research Centres > Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Conservation Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Organisms and the Environment Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Research Centres > Metabolic Health
Depositing User:	Pure Connector
Date Deposited:	09 Oct 2015 10:00
Last Modified:	19 Oct 2023 01:30
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/54657
DOI:	10.1038/hdy.2015.84

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