Abstract
BackgroundTrichophyton rubrum (T. rubrum) is an important model organism of dermatophytes, which are the most common fungal pathogens worldwide. Despite the severity and prevalence of the infection caused by these pathogens, current therapies are not sufficient. MicroRNA (miRNA) is a class of small noncoding RNAs that are key factors in the regulation of gene expression. These miRNAs are reported to be highly conserved in different organisms and are involved in various essential cellular processes. In this study, we performed an integrated analysis of microRNA-like RNAs (milRNAs) and mRNAs between conidial and mycelial stages to investigate the roles of milRNAs in regulating the expression of target genes in T. rubrum.ResultsA total of 158 conserved milRNAs and 12 novel milRNAs were identified in our study, corresponding to 5470 target genes, which were involved in various essential biological pathways. In addition, 137 target genes corresponding to 21 milRNAs were concurrent differentially expressed between the conidial and mycelial stages. Among these 137 target genes, 64 genes showed the opposite trend to their corresponding milRNAs in expression difference between the two stages, indicating possible negative regulation. Furthermore, 46% of differentially expressed target genes are involved in transcription, transcriptional and post-transcriptional regulation. Our results indicate that milRNAs might associate with other regulatory elements to control gene expression at both transcriptional and post-transcriptional level.ConclusionsThis study provides the first analysis of milRNA expression profile in T. rubrum as well as dermatophytes in general. The results revealed the roles of milRNAs in regulating gene expression between the two major growth stages of this fungus. Our study deepens our understanding of T. rubrum and will serve as a foundation for further investigations to combat this fungus.
Highlights
Trichophyton rubrum (T. rubrum) is an important model organism of dermatophytes, which are the most common fungal pathogens worldwide
Overview of the small RNA sequences in T. rubrum To explore the existence of MicroRNA-like RNA (milRNA) in T. rubrum, we constructed small RNA libraries for the conidial and mycelial stages based on two separate biological replicates
The results showed that most homologous target genes were regulated by the identical milRNAs in four species including A. benhamiae, T. equinum, T. tonsurans and T. verrucosum, which are closely related to T. rubrum
Summary
Trichophyton rubrum (T. rubrum) is an important model organism of dermatophytes, which are the most common fungal pathogens worldwide. MicroRNA (miRNA) is a class of small noncoding RNAs that are key factors in the regulation of gene expression. These miRNAs are reported to be highly conserved in different organisms and are involved in various essential cellular processes. We performed an integrated analysis of microRNA-like RNAs (milRNAs) and mRNAs between conidial and mycelial stages to investigate the roles of milRNAs in regulating the expression of target genes in T. rubrum. MicroRNA (MiRNA) is a class of evolutionarily conserved small noncoding RNAs molecules (sncRNAs) that are approximately 18–22 nt in length but powerfully regulate genes expression [1]. MiRNAs primarily regulate gene expression by binding to complementary sequences of 3′-untranslated regions (3’-UTRs) of target mRNAs through a motif containing a 6–8 nt “seed” sequence. Studies have reported that TF and miRNA may mutually regulate each other to form feedback loops (FBLs) or feed-forward loops (FFLs) in which a TF regulates a miRNA or a miRNA represses a TF and both of them co-regulate joint targets [12,13,14]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
