PRJNA287854
Pol IV and RDR2-dependent precursors of 24 nt siRNAs
In Arabidopsis thaliana, 24 nt siRNAs guide cytosine methylation to complementary DNA sequences, helping silence transposons and a subset of genes. Biogenesis of 24 nt siRNAs requires nuclear multisubunit RNA Polymerase IV (Pol IV), RNA-DEPENDENT RNA POLYMERASE 2 (RDR2) and DICER-LIKE3 (DCL3). We used Illumina deep sequencing of 15-80 nt RNAs from wild type (Col-0) and dcl2 dcl3 dcl4 triple mutant plants to identify short dsRNAs that are synthesized by the Pol IV-RDR2 complex, and which are subsequently diced by DCL3.