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Abstract
The encoding of microRNAs in retroviral genomes has remained a controversial hypothesis despite significant supporting evidence in recent years. A recent publication demonstrating the production of functional miRNAs from the retrovirus bovine leukemia virus adds further credence to the fact that retroviruses do indeed encode their own miRNAs. Here we comment on the importance of this paper to the field, as well as examine the other known examples of miRNAs encoded by RNA viruses.
Highlights
The importance of microRNAs and other small non-coding RNAs in human disease is becoming increasingly evident
A paper recently published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences by Kincaid et al describes several miRNAs encoded by the retrovirus bovine leukemia virus (BLV)
The authors demonstrate that these miRNAs are encoded on RNA polymerase III (Pol III) transcripts and identify one that mimics a cellular oncogenic miRNA [2]
Summary
The importance of microRNAs (miRNAs) and other small non-coding RNAs (sncRNAs) in human disease is becoming increasingly evident. For DNA viruses, several hundred viral miRNAs have been described; the description of miRNAs derived from RNA viruses is relatively rare. While the Pol III transcription of miRNAs has been identified previously in DNA viruses and higher organisms [3], this is the first description of Pol III based miRNA transcription from a RNA virus. The authors failed to identified Pol III transcribed miRNAs from the five retroviruses of the subfamily Spumaretrovirinae they examined but did detect numerous miRNAs from the one Orthoretrovirinae member they tested, BLV. Despite the lack of identifying Pol III transcribed miRNAs from the limited set of other retroviruses examined, it is likely that additional RNA viruses will be found to encode Pol III transcribed miRNAs due to the evolutionary conservation of this
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