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La Rocca G, King B, Shui B, Li X, Zhang M, Akat KM, Ogrodowski P, Mastroleo C, Chen K, Cavalieri V, Ma Y, Anelli V, Betel D, Vidigal J, Tuschl T, Meister G, Thompson CB, Lindsten T, Haigis K, Ventura A. Inducible and reversible inhibition of miRNA-mediated gene repression in vivo. eLife 2021; 10:70948. [PMID: 34463618 PMCID: PMC8476124 DOI: 10.7554/elife.70948] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2021] [Accepted: 08/24/2021] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Although virtually all gene networks are predicted to be controlled by miRNAs, the contribution of this important layer of gene regulation to tissue homeostasis in adult animals remains unclear. Gain and loss-of-function experiments have provided key insights into the specific function of individual miRNAs, but effective genetic tools to study the functional consequences of global inhibition of miRNA activity in vivo are lacking. Here we report the generation and characterization of a genetically engineered mouse strain in which miRNA-mediated gene repression can be reversibly inhibited without affecting miRNA biogenesis or abundance. We demonstrate the usefulness of this strategy by investigating the consequences of acute inhibition of miRNA function in adult animals. We find that different tissues and organs respond differently to global loss of miRNA function. While miRNA-mediated gene repression is essential for the homeostasis of the heart and the skeletal muscle, it is largely dispensable in the majority of other organs. Even in tissues where it is not required for homeostasis, such as the intestine and hematopoietic system, miRNA activity can become essential during regeneration following acute injury. These data support a model where many metazoan tissues primarily rely on miRNA function to respond to potentially pathogenic events.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gaspare La Rocca
- Cancer Biology and Genetics Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, United States
| | - Bryan King
- Cancer Biology and Genetics Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, United States
| | - Bing Shui
- Department of Cancer Biology, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, United States
| | - Xiaoyi Li
- Cancer Biology and Genetics Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, United States.,Louis V. Gerstner Jr. Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, United States
| | - Minsi Zhang
- Cancer Biology and Genetics Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, United States
| | - Kemal M Akat
- Laboratory of RNA Molecular Biology, The Rockefeller University, New York, United States
| | - Paul Ogrodowski
- Cancer Biology and Genetics Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, United States
| | - Chiara Mastroleo
- Cancer Biology and Genetics Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, United States
| | - Kevin Chen
- Cancer Biology and Genetics Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, United States
| | - Vincenzo Cavalieri
- Department of Biological, Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy
| | - Yilun Ma
- Weill Cornell/Rockefeller/Sloan-Kettering Tri-Institutional MD-PhD Program, New York, United States
| | - Viviana Anelli
- Center of Integrative Biology, University of Trento, Trento, Italy
| | - Doron Betel
- Hem/Oncology, Medicine and Institution for Computational Biomedicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, United States
| | - Joana Vidigal
- Laboratory of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, United States
| | - Thomas Tuschl
- Laboratory of RNA Molecular Biology, The Rockefeller University, New York, United States
| | - Gunter Meister
- Regensburg Center for Biochemistry, University of Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany
| | - Craig B Thompson
- Cancer Biology and Genetics Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, United States
| | - Tullia Lindsten
- Immunology Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, United States
| | - Kevin Haigis
- Department of Cancer Biology, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, United States
| | - Andrea Ventura
- Cancer Biology and Genetics Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, United States
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