title: The SNORD115 (H/MBII-52) and SNORD116 (H/MBII-85) gene clusters at the imprinted Prader-Willi locus generate canonical box C/D snoRNAs.
abstract: The imprinted Snurf-Snrpn chromosomal domain contains two large arrays of tandemly repeated, paternally expressed box C/D small-nucleolar RNA (snoRNA) genes: the SNORD115 (H/MBII-52) and SNORD116 (H/MBII-85) gene clusters believed to play key roles in the fine-tuning of serotonin receptor (5-HT2C) pre-mRNA processing and in the etiology of the Prader-Willi Syndrome (PWS), respectively. SNORD115 and SNORD116 were recently proposed to undergo significant conversion into shorter RNA species, the so-called psnoRNAs. Here, we provide evidence that argues against the existence of abundant psnoRNAs in human or mouse brain. Instead, we characterize a previously unsuspected low-abundance, fibrillarin-associated SNORD115-derived smaller RNA species. Based on these findings, we strongly recommend that PWS-encoded SNORD115 and SNORD116 be considered as bona fide box C/D snoRNAs.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Biologie Moléculaire Eucaryote, UPS, Université de Toulouse, Toulouse, France.
authors.forename: Marie-Line
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Bortolin-Cavaillé
authors.forename: Jérôme
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cavaillé
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D056426:Genetic Loci; D018392:Genomic Imprinting; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D005810:Multigene Family; D011218:Prader-Willi Syndrome / Q000235:genetics*; D020537:RNA, Small Nucleolar / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D020537:RNA, Small Nucleolar