Comparative analysis of the Dicerlike gene family reveals loss of miR162 target site in SmDCL1 from Salvia miltiorrhiza

作   者：邵芬娟，邱德有，卢善发
期刊名称：Scientific Reports
影响因子：5.578
卷 期 号：5
页     码：9891
关键词： miR162， target site，DCL1
论文摘要：
DCL1, the core component for miRNA biogenesis, is itself regulated by miR162 in Arabidopsis.
MiRNA-mediated feedback regulation of AtDCL1 is important to maintain the proper level of DCL1
transcripts. However, it is unknown whether the miRNA-mediated regulation of DCL1 is conserved
among plants. We analyzed the SmDCL gene family in Salvia miltiorrhiza, an emerging model
plant for Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) studies, using a comprehensive approach integrating
genome-wide prediction, molecular cloning, gene expression profiling, and posttranscriptional
regulation analysis. A total of five SmDCLs were identified. Comparative analysis of SmDCLs and
AtDCLs showed an apparent enlargement of SmDCL introns in S. miltiorrhiza. The absence of miR162
in S. miltiorrhiza and the loss of miR162 target site in SmDCL1 were unexpectedly found. Further
analysis showed that the miR162 target site was not present in DCL1 from ancient plants and was
gained during plant evolution. The gained miR162 target site might be lost in a few modern plants
through nucleotide mutations. Our results provide evidence for the gain and loss of miR162 and its
target sites in Dicer-like genes during evolution. The data is useful for understanding the evolution of miRNA-mediated feedback regulation of DCLs in plants.