Abundances of microRNAs in human cells can be estimated as a function of the abundances of YRHB and RHHK tetranucleotides in these microRNAs as an ill-posed inverse problem solution

Abstract

Mature microRNAs (miRNAs) are small endogenous non-coding RNAs 18–25 nt in length. They program the RNA Induced Silencing Complex (RISC) to make it inhibit either messenger RNAs or promoter DNAs. We have found that the mean abundance of miRNAs in Arabidopsis is correlated with the abundance of DRYD tetranucleotides near the 3′-end and the abundance of WRHB tetranucleotides in the center of the miRNA sequence. Based on this correlation, we have estimated miRNA abundances in seven organs of this plant, namely: inflorescences, stems, siliques, seedlings, roots, cauline, and rosette leaves. We have also found that the mean affinity of miRNAs for two proteins in the Argonaute family (Ago2 and Ago3) in man is correlated with the abundance of YRHB tetranucleotides near the 3′-end and that the preference of miRNAs for Ago2 is correlated with the abundance of RHHK tetranucleotides in the center of the miRNA sequence. This allowed us to obtain statistically significant estimates of miRNA abundances in human embryonic kidney cells, HEK293T. These findings in relation to two taxonomically distant entities (man and Arabidopsis) fit one another like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, which allowed us to heuristically generalize them and state that the miRNA abundance in the human brain may be determined by the abundance of YRHB and RHHK tetranucleotides in these miRNAs.