HUANG Lin , , ZHANG Rui , SU Bing. A Human-specific Mutation Leads to Reduced Interaction Between miR-124a and One of Its Target Genes, PLOD3. Zoological Research, 2008, 29(4): 363-367. doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1141.2008.04363
Citation:
HUANG Lin , , ZHANG Rui , SU Bing. A Human-specific Mutation Leads to Reduced Interaction Between miR-124a and One of Its Target Genes, PLOD3. Zoological Research, 2008, 29(4): 363-367. doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1141.2008.04363
HUANG Lin , , ZHANG Rui , SU Bing. A Human-specific Mutation Leads to Reduced Interaction Between miR-124a and One of Its Target Genes, PLOD3. Zoological Research, 2008, 29(4): 363-367. doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1141.2008.04363
Citation:
HUANG Lin , , ZHANG Rui , SU Bing. A Human-specific Mutation Leads to Reduced Interaction Between miR-124a and One of Its Target Genes, PLOD3. Zoological Research, 2008, 29(4): 363-367. doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1141.2008.04363
State Key Laboratory of Genetic Resources and Evolution,,Kunming Institute of Zoology,the Chinese Academy of Sciences,Kunming 650223, China;2. Kunming Primate Research Center, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650223, China;3. Graduate University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
MicroRNAs (miRNAs)are a class of noncoding RNAs (20-24 nt) that can post-transcriptionally regulate the expression of protein coding genes in metazoans. Among them, miR-124a, which is preferentially expressed in the brain, controls the neuronal differentiation in mammals. As miRNAs recognize sequences in the 3′ untranslated region (UTR) of the target genes, during human origin, mutations located in the 3′UTRs of the target genes may lead to changes in miRNA regulation. Through target gene prediction and comparative sequence analysis in representative mammalian species, we identified a target gene (PLOD3) of miR-124a, which has a human-specific mutation in the 3′UTR target sequence. Using the in vitro reporter gene system, we discovered that the human specific mutation in the target site of PLOD3 leads to reduced interaction between miR-124a and PLOD3. This result implies that sequence changes located in the 3′UTR segment of the target genes may have functional consequence and eventually contribute to the origin and evolution of human cognition.