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Expression of microRNA processing machinery genes in rhesus monkey oocytes and embryos of different developmental potentials
Author(s) -
Mtango Namdori R.,
Potireddy Santhi,
Latham Keith E.
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
molecular reproduction and development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.745
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1098-2795
pISSN - 1040-452X
DOI - 10.1002/mrd.20950
Subject(s) - biology , microrna , oocyte , germinal vesicle , oogenesis , gene expression , untranslated region , microbiology and biotechnology , regulation of gene expression , embryo , three prime untranslated region , transcriptome , genetics , messenger rna , gene
Abstract MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of small RNAs that silence gene expression. In animal cells, miRNAs bind to the 3′ untranslated regions of specific mRNAs and inhibit their translation. The correct regulation of mRNA expression by miRNAs is believed to be important for oocyte maturation, early development and implantation. We examined the expression of 25 mRNAs involved in the microRNA processing pathway in a nonhuman primate oocyte and embryo model. We observed that mRNAs related to miRNA splicing are downregulated during oocyte maturation while those related to miRNA processing are upregulated, indicating that there may exist a temporal difference in their activities related to transcriptional activity in germinal vesicle stage oocytes. We also observed that the vast majority of mRNAs examined were insensitive to α‐amanitin at the 8–16 cell stage. The expression data did not reveal a major impact of embryo culture, and hormonal stimulation protocol affected only a small number of mRNAs, suggesting that the components of the pathway may be accumulated in the oocyte during oogenesis and resistant to exogenous insults. In comparison to published mouse array data, we observed species differences and similarities in the temporal expression patterns of some genes, suggesting that miRNA processing may be regulated differently. These data extend our understanding of the potential roles of miRNA during primate embryogenesis. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 76: 255–269, 2009. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.