The role of microRNA regulation in the evolution of development

一类被称为microrna （miRNAs）的小rna最近被发现，并被证明通过结合转录基因的非翻译区域来调节基因表达，从而导致降解和/或抑制蛋白质的形成。这些miRNA究竟如何发挥作用还有待发现，因此对miRNA调控对发育和形态产生的重要性知之甚少。与编码基因相比，mirna的进化速度更快，它们也可能更快地获得和失去靶标，因此它们可能在进化过程中提供重要变异的来源。本项目将使用多种分子和计算方法来检测mirna在紫癜海胆中的功能作用，本研究选择紫癜海胆是因为它具有非常明确的早期发育基因调控网络。通过测试mirna是否在其他棘皮动物，特别是在近亲海胆Lytechinus variegatus和远亲海星Asterina miniata中调节类似基因，也将确定这种调节是如何进化的，以及它可能产生的发育后果。基于转录因子的基因调控网络是如何在海星和海胆之间进化的，以及这对它们的发育的影响，我们已经知道了很多。预计该项目将揭示miRNA调控如何控制发育以及它如何在基因调控网络的背景下随进化时间而变化。几名女研究生和本科生将接受各种实验和计算技术的培训。此外，PI和PI实验室的研究生将在Ringold高中开设一个简短的实验和讲座课程，向这些学生介绍计算生物学和发育生物学的概念。

A class of small RNAs, called microRNAs (miRNAs), has recently been discovered and has been shown to regulate gene expression by binding to the untranslated regions of transcribed genes leading to degradation and/or repression of protein formation. Much remains to be discovered of exactly how these miRNAs function, and consequently very little is known about the importance of miRNA regulation to development and the generation of morphology. MiRNAs evolve rapidly compared to coding genes and they may also acquire and lose targets more rapidly so that they could provide a source of significant variation during evolution. This project will use a variety of molecular and computational approaches to examine the functional role of miRNAs in the sea urchin Strongylocentrotus purpuratus, which was chosen for this study because it has an extremely well characterized gene regulatory network for early development. It will also be determined how this regulation may have evolved, and what developmental consequences this may have, by testing whether miRNAs regulate similar genes in other echinoderms, specifically in the closely related sea urchin Lytechinus variegatus and the distantly related sea star Asterina miniata. A great deal is known of how transcription factor based gene regulatory networks have evolved between the sea star and sea urchins and the consequences of this for their development. It is anticipated that this project will reveal how miRNA regulation can control development and how it changes over evolutionary time in the context of a gene regulatory network. Several women graduate and undergraduate students will be trained in a variety of experimental and computational techniques. Also the PI and graduate students in the PI's lab will run a short lab and lecture course at Ringold High School to introduce these students to the concepts of computational and developmental biology.