Regulatory roles of RNA binding proteins in the nervous system of C. elegans.

Panid Sharifnia,Yishi Jin

doi:10.3389/fnmol.2014.00100

Abstract

Neurons have evolved to employ many factors involved in the regulation of RNA processing due to their complex cellular compartments. RNA binding proteins (RBPs) are key regulators in transcription, translation, and RNA degradation. Increasing studies have shown that regulatory RNA processing is critical for the establishment, functionality, and maintenance of neural circuits. Recent advances in high-throughput transcriptomics have rapidly expanded our knowledge of the landscape of RNA regulation, but also raised the challenge for mechanistic dissection of the specific roles of RBPs in complex tissues such as the nervous system. The C. elegans genome encodes many RBPs conserved throughout evolution. The rich analytic tools in molecular genetics and simple neural anatomy of C. elegans offer advantages to define functions of genes in vivo at the level of a single cell. Notably, the discovery of microRNAs has had transformative effects to the understanding of neuronal development, circuit plasticity, and neurological diseases. Here we review recent studies unraveling diverse roles of RBPs in the development, function, and plasticity of C. elegans nervous system. We first summarize the general technologies for studying RBPs in C. elegans. We then focus on the roles of several RBPs that control gene- and cell-type specific production of neuronal transcripts.

Highlights

MOLECULAR NEUROSCIENCEReviewed by: Baojin Ding, University of Massachusetts Medical School, USA Douglas Portman, University of Rochester, USA
Precise regulation of RNA, including mRNAs and small RNAs, is essential for controlling gene expression in a spatial and temporal manner
The C. elegans’ genome encodes approximately 500 RNA binding proteins (RBPs), defined by having an RNA binding domain such as the RNA recognition motif (RRM) and K Homology Domain (KH) (Lee and Schedl, 2006). Many of these genes are conserved from nematode to mammals, such as the PUF family of RBPs, whose name is derived from the homologs identified in Drosophila (Pumilio) and C. elegans (Fem-3) (Table 1) (MacNicol et al, 2011; Quenault et al, 2011; Dasgupta and Ladd, 2012; Colombrita et al, 2013; Modic et al, 2013; Huang and Li, 2014)

Summary

MOLECULAR NEUROSCIENCE

Reviewed by: Baojin Ding, University of Massachusetts Medical School, USA Douglas Portman, University of Rochester, USA. Neurons have evolved to employ many factors involved in the regulation of RNA processing due to their complex cellular compartments. Increasing studies have shown that regulatory RNA processing is critical for the establishment, functionality, and maintenance of neural circuits. Recent advances in high-throughput transcriptomics have rapidly expanded our knowledge of the landscape of RNA regulation, and raised the challenge for mechanistic dissection of the specific roles of RBPs in complex tissues such as the nervous system. The rich analytic tools in molecular genetics and simple neural anatomy of C. elegans offer advantages to define functions of genes in vivo at the level of a single cell. We review recent studies unraveling diverse roles of RBPs in the development, function, and plasticity of C. elegans nervous system. We focus on the roles of several RBPs that control gene- and cell-type specific production of neuronal transcripts

INTRODUCTION

Mammalian homolog

CONCLUSIONS AND PERSPECTIVES