title: Bioinformatics Study of Structural Patterns in Plant MicroRNA Precursors.
abstract: According to the RNA world theory, RNAs which stored genetic information and catalyzed chemical reactions had their contribution in the formation of current living organisms. In recent years, researchers studied this molecule diversity, i.a. focusing on small non-coding regulatory RNAs. Among them, of particular interest is evolutionarily ancient, 19-24 nt molecule of microRNA (miRNA). It has been already recognized as a regulator of gene expression in eukaryotes. In plants, miRNA plays a key role in the response to stress conditions and it participates in the process of growth and development. MicroRNAs originate from primary transcripts (pri-miRNA) encoded in the nuclear genome. They are processed from single-stranded stem-loop RNA precursors containing hairpin structures. While the mechanism of mature miRNA production in animals is better understood, its biogenesis in plants remains less clear. Herein, we present the results of bioinformatics analysis aimed at discovering how plant microRNAs are recognized within their precursors (pre-miRNAs). The study has been focused on sequential and structural motif identification in the neighbourhood of microRNA.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Computing Science and European Centre for Bioinformatics and Genomics, Poznan University of Technology, Poznan, Poland.
authors.forename: J
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-4563-7481
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Miskiewicz
authors.affiliation: Institute of Computing Science and European Centre for Bioinformatics and Genomics, Poznan University of Technology, Poznan, Poland.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Tomczyk
authors.affiliation: Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Polish Academy of Sciences, Poznan, Poland.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mickiewicz
authors.affiliation: Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Polish Academy of Sciences, Poznan, Poland.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sarzynska
authors.affiliation: Institute of Computing Science and European Centre for Bioinformatics and Genomics, Poznan University of Technology, Poznan, Poland; Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Polish Academy of Sciences, Poznan, Poland.
authors.forename: M
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-8724-7908
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Szachniuk
mesh_terms: D001483:Base Sequence; D019295:Computational Biology / Q000379:methods*; D035683:MicroRNAs / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics; D009690:Nucleic Acid Conformation; D009711:Nucleotides / Q000235:genetics; D010944:Plants / Q000235:genetics*; D012322:RNA Precursors / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics; D018749:RNA, Plant / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D035683:MicroRNAs; D009711:Nucleotides; D012322:RNA Precursors; D018749:RNA, Plant