A novel evolutionary conserved mechanism of RNA stability regulates synexpression of primordial germ cell-specific genes prior to the sex-determination stage

ABSTRACT: Dmrt1 is a highly conserved transcription factor, which is critically involved in regulation of gonad development of vertebrates. In medaka a duplicate of dmrt1, acting as master sex-determining gene, has a tightly timely and locally patterned gonadal expression pattern. In addition to transcriptional regulation, a sequence motif in the 3’ UTR (D3U-box) was shown to mediate transcript stability of dmrt1 mRNAs from medaka and other vertebrates. We show here that in medaka two RNA-binding proteins with antagonizing properties competitively target this D3U-box, promoting either RNA stabilization in germ cells or degradation in the soma. Such evolutionary conservation of the D3U-box motif within the dmrt1 genes and among genomes of metazoans together with preserved expression patterns of the targeting RNA binding proteins in subsets of germ cells, suggest this new mechanism for controlling RNA stability is not restricted to fishes, but might also apply to other vertebrates.

ORGANISM(S): Oryzias latipes

PROVIDER: GSE104726 | GEO | 2018/07/01

REPOSITORIES: GEO