Production and actions of small RNAsV. Narry Kim and Mikiko C. Siomi
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Recent progress in cloning, deep sequencing and bioinformatics have revealed an astounding landscape of small RNAs in eukaryotic cells. Small (20–30 nucleotides) RNAs, in association with Argonaute-family proteins, target mRNAs and chromatin, and thereby keep both the genome and the transcriptome under extensive surveillance. Based on their biogenesis mechanism and the types of Argonaute proteins they are associated with, endogenous small RNAs can be grouped into three classes: microRNAs (miRNAs), endogenous small interfering RNAs (endo-siRNAs) and Piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs). This Poster depicts our current understanding of the processing pathways of eukaryotic small RNAs and their possible mechanisms of action, and accompanies a Review article entitled Biogenesis of small RNAs in animals by V. Narry Kim, Jinju Han and Mikiko C. Siomi in the February 2009 issue.
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For more on post-transcriptional control mechanisms in Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology, visit our Article Series on Post–transcriptional control
