RNA干涉原理图

We have discovered recently that some plant virus silencing suppressor proteins are functional when expressed in cultured Drosophila cells. We believe that silencing suppressor proteins can be used as probes to dissect the RNAi pathway. We have initiated a new research programme to identify Drosophila proteins that are targeted by and interact with various plant virus silencing suppressor proteins, and we will use the information obtained from these studies to investigate the RNAi pathways in plants and other higher organisms.

A cellular pathway mitigates post-transcriptional gene silencing. Long double-stranded RNA or microRNA hairpin RNAs are processed by the cellular factor Dicer to form siRNAs or miRNAs. These RNAs are used by a RNAi silencing complex to degrade mRNA (RNAi) or to translationally repress the mRNA (siRNA). Little is known about the mechanisms behind small RNA directed silencing, and even less about the factors which participate in these two processes.