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Full-Text Articles in Genetics and Genomics

Dauer Larva Quiescence Alters The Circuitry Of Microrna Pathways Regulating Cell Fate Progression In C. Elegans, Xantha Karp, Victor Ambros Oct 2015

Dauer Larva Quiescence Alters The Circuitry Of Microrna Pathways Regulating Cell Fate Progression In C. Elegans, Xantha Karp, Victor Ambros

Victor R. Ambros

In C. elegans larvae, the execution of stage-specific developmental events is controlled by heterochronic genes, which include those encoding a set of transcription factors and the microRNAs that regulate the timing of their expression. Under adverse environmental conditions, developing larvae enter a stress-resistant, quiescent stage called 'dauer'. Dauer larvae are characterized by the arrest of all progenitor cell lineages at a stage equivalent to the end of the second larval stage (L2). If dauer larvae encounter conditions favorable for resumption of reproductive growth, they recover and complete development normally, indicating that post-dauer larvae possess mechanisms to accommodate an indefinite period …


Caenorhabditis Elegans Micrornas Of The Let-7 Family Act In Innate Immune Response Circuits And Confer Robust Developmental Timing Against Pathogen Stress, Zhiji Ren, Victor R. Ambros Oct 2015

Caenorhabditis Elegans Micrornas Of The Let-7 Family Act In Innate Immune Response Circuits And Confer Robust Developmental Timing Against Pathogen Stress, Zhiji Ren, Victor R. Ambros

Victor R. Ambros

Animals maintain their developmental robustness against natural stresses through numerous regulatory mechanisms, including the posttranscriptional regulation of gene expression by microRNAs (miRNAs). Caenorhabditis elegans miRNAs of the let-7 family (let-7-Fam) function semiredundantly to confer robust stage specificity of cell fates in the hypodermal seam cell lineages. Here, we show reciprocal regulatory interactions between let-7-Fam miRNAs and the innate immune response pathway in C. elegans. Upon infection of C. elegans larvae with the opportunistic human pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa, the developmental timing defects of certain let-7-Fam miRNA mutants are enhanced. This enhancement is mediated by the p38 MAPK innate immune pathway acting …


Micrornas: Genetically Sensitized Worms Reveal New Secrets, Victor Ambros Oct 2015

Micrornas: Genetically Sensitized Worms Reveal New Secrets, Victor Ambros

Victor R. Ambros

Why do many microRNA gene mutants display no evident phenotype? Multiply mutant worms that are selectively impaired in genetic regulatory network activities have been used to uncover previously unknown functions for numerous Caenorhabditis elegans microRNAs.