中科院上海生命科學學院的劉默芳(Mo-Fang Liu)研究員和王恩多(En-Duo Wang)院士為這篇論文的共同通訊作者。前者的研究方向是非編碼RNA在癌癥發生和精子發生中的功能機制。后者主要從事蛋白質生物合成的質量控制研究。
生殖系細胞擔負著遺傳信息的世代傳遞,其基因組的完整性對個體和物種維持都至關重要。真核生物基因組中存在不少自私的DNA鏈——轉座子。這類遺傳物質能夠在染色體的不同位點間跳躍,導致基因組不穩定,甚至引發癌癥,在生殖細胞系中,轉座子的跳躍則可能導致不育。
Piwi互作RNA(piRNA)是近年來新發現的一類小RNA分子,主要在生殖細胞系中表達,對于維持生殖系DNA完整、抑制轉座子轉錄、抑制翻譯、參與異染色質的形成、執行表觀遺傳調控和生殖細胞發生等均有重要作用。過去的研究表明,生殖細胞特異性表達的PIWI家族蛋白是piRNA作用途徑的中心,為piRNA生物生成及功能所必需。小鼠PIWI家族包括MILI、MIWI和MIWI2三個成員,特異性地在睪丸中表達,對小鼠精子發生至關重要。盡管近來的研究增進了我們對于piRNA生物合成及功能的了解,然而其作用通路機制仍然有待深究。
在這篇文章中,研究人員證實小鼠PIWI (MIWI)是通過APC/C-26S蛋白酶體信號通路進行降解,piRNAs通過促進MIWI與一種APC/C底物結合亞基的互作在這一過程中發揮了至關重要的作用。有趣的是,研究人員發現在晚期精細胞中piRNA觸發的MIWI破壞,轉而導致了piRNA消除,這揭示了一條在特定的發育階段調節性清除MIWI/piRNA機器的前饋機制。重要的是,研究人員發現適當清除MIWI/piRNA是精子成熟的必要條件。
這些結果表明piRNAs通過泛素-蛋白酶體信號通路調控了MIWI/piRNA機器的清除,證實在雄性生殖細胞發育過程中適當的時序調控MIWI/piRNA具有非常重要的意義。
piRNA-Triggered MIWI Ubiquitination and Removal by APC/C in Late Spermatogenesis
Shuang Zhao, Lan-Tao Gou, Man Zhang, Li-Dong Zu, Min-Min Hua, Ye Hua, Hui-Juan Shi, Yong Li, Jinsong Li, Dangsheng Li, En-Duo Wang, Mo-Fang Liu
The PIWI/PIWI-interacting RNA (piRNA) machinery has been well documented to maintain genome integrity by silencing transposons in animal germ cells. Recent studies have advanced our understanding of the biogenesis and function of this machinery; however, its metabolism has remained largely unexplored. Here, we show that murine PIWI (MIWI) is degraded through the APC/C-26S proteasome pathway and that piRNAs play an indispensable role in this process by enhancing MIWI interaction with an APC/C substrate-binding subunit. Interestingly, piRNA-triggered MIWI destruction occurs in late spermatids, which in turn leads to piRNA elimination, suggesting a feedforward mechanism for coordinated removal of the MIWI/piRNA machinery at a specific developmental stage. Importantly, the proper removal of MIWI/piRNA is essential for sperm maturation. Together, our results reveal a role for piRNAs in regulating the clearance of the MIWI/piRNA machinery via the ubiquitin-proteosome pathway and demonstrate the critical importance of proper temporal regulation of MIWI/piRNA in male germ cell development.