Path-breaking research on microRNAs and its role in gene expression by UoH researchers

The UoH researchers study, which demonstrates that miRNAs act in a combinatorial and cell type-specific manner to reinforce B and T lineage-specific gene expression programs by repressing inappropriate genes.

Hyderabad: A team of researchers led by Prof. Jagan Pongubala, Department of Animal Biology, School of Life Sciences, University of Hyderabad (UoH) has probed the genome-wide expression accompanied by functional analysis of miRNAs (MicroRNAs) during lymphoid (B and T) lineage commitment, a statement from UoH on Monday said.

The UoH researchers study, which demonstrates that miRNAs act in a combinatorial and cell type-specific manner to reinforce B and T lineage-specific gene expression programs by repressing inappropriate genes, was published on November 8 in the respected scientific journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS).  

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The researchers said that the miRNAs belong to a class of small non-coding RNAs (ribonucleic acids), approximately 22 nucleotides that often silence the expression of protein-coding genes by binding to their cognate messenger RNAs (mRNAs).  

Significant advances have been made in the discovery of miRNAs and their respective target genes during a number of physiological processes such as cellular development and differentiation. Deregulation of miRNA function is closely associated with several immune cell diseases, particularly cancer.

The absence of these miRNAs in developing lymphocytes results in a mixed-lineage gene expression pattern. Interestingly, most of these miRNAs turned out to be regulated by primary lineage-specific transcription factors, highlighting the complexity of regulatory mechanisms orchestrating B and T lymphocyte differentiation.

Such context-dependent, genome-wide analyses of miRNAs combined with functional studies represent one of the first comprehensive investigations to understand the role of miRNAs in developing lymphocytes.

Knock- down and overexpression studies show miRNAs play an important role in the sustenance of lineage-specific gene expression programs and thereby enforce lymphoid cell-fate commitment. These studies provide insights into the role of miRNAs in the maintenance of lineage identity and regulation of cell-fate decisions, the release said.

Prof. B. J. Rao, the Vice-Chancellor of University of Hyderabad, congratulated Prof. Jagan Pongubala and his team for their excellent work and anticipated more such high-impact publications from the University would foster an environment that sustains highest standards of scholarship and learning.

The research team included Sameena Nikhat, Anurupa D. Yadavalli, Arpita Prusty, Priyanka K. Narayan, Dasaradhi Palakodeti, Cornelis Murre, and Jagan M. R. Pongubala.

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