2021-BBSRC/NSF-BIO An autonomous registry system for plant microRNAs

MicroRNAs微小的RNAs，起调节动植物其他基因的功能。在植物中，microRNAs参与许多生物过程，包括植物不同组织的发育，以及植物适应和响应逆境的机制。在农作物中，已发现microRNAs与肥力和产量有关，因此是了解粮食和农业的重要分子。在过去的二十年里，人们发现了数以千计的不同的microRNA基因。当一种新的microRNA被发现时，至关重要的是对它进行编目、命名，并向科学界提供有关它的信息。自2004年以来，存在一个单一的中央登记册和数据库，用于命名和编目microRNAs：miRbase(https://www.mirbase.org/).然而，到目前为止，对microRNA进行命名和编目的过程是耗时和劳动密集型的。最近，发现microRNAs的速度已经超出了miRBase处理它们的能力。然而，对单一可信资源的需求比以往任何时候都更加迫切。该提案旨在设计和实现一个系统，通过该系统，对新的microRNAs的注释质量进行自动评估，命名并存储在公共miRBase数据库中，首先专注于植物microRNAs。我们生产的注释新的microRNA的工具将免费公开提供，这样所有的microRNA生物学家都可以使用相同的标准来发现microRNA。因此，这项工作将使microRNA领域继续扩大。

MicroRNAs tiny RNAs that function to regulate other genes in animals and plants. In plants, microRNAs are involved in many biological processes, including development of different plant tissues, and the mechanisms by which plants adapt and respond to stress. In crops, microRNAs have been found to be involved in fertility and yield, and are therefore important molecules to understand for food and agriculture. The past two decades have seen the discovery of thousands of different microRNA genes. When a new microRNA is discovered, it is vital that it is catalogued, named, and information about it made available to the scientific community. A single central registry and database has existed since 2004 to name and catalogue microRNAs: miRBase (https://www.mirbase.org/). However, the processes by which microRNAs have been named and catalogued have been, until now, time-consuming and labour-intensive. Recently, the pace at which microRNAs have been discovered has overwhelmed the capacity of miRBase to deal with them. Yet the need for a single trusted resource is more acute than ever.This proposal aims to design and implement a system by which new microRNAs are automatically assessed for the quality of their annotation, named, and deposited in the public miRBase database, focussing first on plant microRNAs. The tools that we produce to annotate new microRNAs will be made freely and publicly available, such that all microRNA biologists can use the same standards for microRNA discovery. This work will therefore enable the continued expansion of the microRNA field.