title: Regulation of physiological processes by microRNAs in insects.
abstract: MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small non-coding RNAs that function in gene regulatory processes in plants and animals by targeting sites within messenger RNA. In insects, miRNAs have been shown to regulate a variety of physiological processes throughout insect development, including molting, metamorphosis, oogenesis, embryogenesis, behavior and host-pathogen interactions. The roles of miRNAs in the model organism,Drosophila melanogaster, have been studied extensively due to the conserved nature of miRNA function among highly divergent species. However, seeking to understand miRNA function in non-drosophilid insect species has become a growing trend in insect science. Here, we highlight the recent discoveries regarding miRNA function in insect physiology and development.
authors.affiliation: Department of Entomology, University of California Riverside CA 92521, USA ; Graduate Program in Genetics, Genomics and Bioinformatics, University of California Riverside CA 92521, USA.
authors.forename: Keira J
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Lucas
authors.affiliation: Department of Entomology, University of California Riverside CA 92521, USA ; Institute for Integrative Genome Biology, University of California Riverside CA 92521, USA.
authors.forename: Bo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: The State Key Laboratory of Silkworm Genome Biology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China.
authors.forename: Shiping
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Entomology, University of California Riverside CA 92521, USA ; Institute for Integrative Genome Biology, University of California Riverside CA 92521, USA.
authors.forename: Alexander S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Raikhel