Horiguchi Gorou
National Institute for Basic Biology/Center for Integrative Bioscience, Myodaiji-cho, Okazaki 444-8585, Japan.
Differentiation. 2004 Mar;72(2-3):65-73. doi: 10.1111/j.1432-0436.2004.07202005.x.
RNA silencing is a rapidly expanding research field, not only because it is a fundamental biological issue but also because its application in the control of gene expression is highly promising. Post-transcriptional gene silencing in plants is a form of RNA silencing by which target RNA is degraded in a sequence-specific manner. Findings regarding the central role that double-stranded RNA plays in triggering RNA silencing have prompted the development of many modified methods for RNA silencing. These methods, in combination with the development of genomic resources, have provided rapid and efficient means by which to investigate gene function in a wide range of plant species. This review addresses the technical aspects of RNA silencing in plants by introducing the principles of several methods of RNA silencing, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of each method.
RNA沉默是一个迅速发展的研究领域，这不仅是因为它是一个基本的生物学问题，还因为其在基因表达调控方面的应用前景广阔。植物中的转录后基因沉默是RNA沉默的一种形式，通过这种方式，靶RNA以序列特异性的方式被降解。关于双链RNA在触发RNA沉默中所起核心作用的发现，促使人们开发了许多RNA沉默的改良方法。这些方法与基因组资源的发展相结合，为研究多种植物物种的基因功能提供了快速有效的手段。本文通过介绍几种RNA沉默方法的原理以及每种方法的优缺点，阐述了植物RNA沉默的技术层面。
