Youngae Lee

Identification of microRNA function by target prediction and expression profiling

MicroRNA (miRNA)

• A new family of small noncoding RNA (~22 nt)

• ~250 miRNA in animal

• Inhibition of translational (animal) or Degradation of target RNA (plants)

• Regulation of cell proliferation, differentiation, apoptosis, carcinogenesis and viral infection

• Unknown function of newly identified animal miRNA

The model for biogenesis and post-transcriptional suppression of miRNA and siRNA

Purpose

• Computational target gene prediction

• Identification of microRNA function

• Expression profiling

Methods

• 3’-UTR sequence retrieval; ENSEMBL website

http:// www. ensembl.org

• The mature miRNA sequence

http://www.sanger.ac.uk/Software/Rfam/mirna/

• Identify the targets of miRNAs

http://genes.mit.edu/targetscan

• Gene Ontology (GO) annotations

http:// geneontology.org/

Results

1. miRNA target prediction algorithm

2. mRNA profiling and function

References

1. Azra Krek et al., Nature genetics, 2005, Vol 37, 495

2. Marianthi Kiriakidou et al., Genes and Development, 2006, Vol 18, 1165

3. T. Hubbard et al., Nucleic Acids Research, 2005, Vol 33, D447

4. Victor Ambros. Nature, 2004, Vol 431, 350

5. Xiaowei Wang et al., Nucleic Acids Research, 2006, Vol 34, 1646

6. Benjamin P. Lewis et al., Cell, Vol 115, 787