Dang Yunkun, Yang Qiuying, Xue Zhihong, Liu Yi
Department of Physiology, ND13.214A, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd., Dallas, TX 75390-9040, USA.
Eukaryot Cell. 2011 Sep;10(9):1148-55. doi: 10.1128/EC.05109-11. Epub 2011 Jul 1.
Small RNA molecules of about 20 to 30 nucleotides function in gene regulation and genomic defense via conserved eukaryotic RNA interference (RNAi)-related pathways. The RNAi machinery consists of three core components: Dicer, Argonaute, and RNA-dependent RNA polymerase. In fungi, the RNAi-related pathways have three major functions: genomic defense, heterochromatin formation, and gene regulation. Studies of Schizosaccharomyces pombe and Neurospora, and other fungi have uncovered surprisingly diverse small RNA biogenesis pathways, suggesting that fungi utilize RNAi-related pathways in various cellular processes to adapt to different environmental conditions. These studies also provided important insights into how RNAi functions in eukaryotic systems in general. In this review, we will discuss our current understanding of the fungal RNAi-related pathways and their functions, with a focus on filamentous fungi. We will also discuss how RNAi can be used as a tool in fungal research.
大约20至30个核苷酸的小RNA分子通过保守的真核RNA干扰（RNAi）相关途径参与基因调控和基因组防御。RNAi机制由三个核心成分组成：Dicer、Argonaute和RNA依赖性RNA聚合酶。在真菌中，RNAi相关途径具有三个主要功能：基因组防御、异染色质形成和基因调控。对粟酒裂殖酵母、粗糙脉孢菌及其他真菌的研究揭示了惊人多样的小RNA生物合成途径，这表明真菌在各种细胞过程中利用RNAi相关途径来适应不同的环境条件。这些研究还为RNAi在真核系统中的一般功能提供了重要见解。在这篇综述中，我们将讨论目前对真菌RNAi相关途径及其功能的理解，重点是丝状真菌。我们还将讨论RNAi如何用作真菌研究的工具。
