부산대학교 도서관

Our understanding of piRNA biogenesis and function comes predominantly from studies of the female I Drosophila i germline, but the male's piRNA pathway remains poorly understood. Previously, studies reported that many proteins involved in the female piRNA pathway are also required for male fertility and I Stellate i silencing in the testis, supporting the conservation of piRNA pathway machinery in both sexes [[3]]. Thanks to their discovery, Chen and colleagues open the possibility to reconsider many other proteins of the piRNA pathway thought to be futile in males, which will help to better understand the global piRNA mechanisms and piRNA sexual dimorphism. In the early 2000s, Aravin and colleagues discovered, in the I Drosophila melanogaster i testis, a new class of small regulatory RNAs initially named repeat-associated small interfering RNA (rasiRNAs). rasiRNAs were first described as regulating a protein-coding gene. [Extracted from the article]