Concordant and discordant regulation of target genes by miR-31 and its isoforms

PLoS One. 2013;8(3):e58169. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0058169. Epub 2013 Mar 5.

Abstract

It has been shown that imprecise cleavage of a primary or precursor RNA by Drosha or Dicer, respectively, may yield a group of microRNA (miRNA) variants designated as "isomiR". Variations in the relative abundance of isoforms for a given miRNA among different species and different cell types beg the question whether these isomiRs might regulate target genes differentially. We compared the capacity of three miR-31 isoforms (miR-31-H, miR-31-P, and miR-31-M), which differ only slightly in their 5'- and/or 3'-end sequences, to regulate several known targets and a predicted target, Dicer. Notably, we found isomiR-31s displayed concordant and discordant regulation of 6 known target genes. Furthermore, we validated a predicted target gene, Dicer, to be a novel target of miR-31 but only miR-31-P could directly repress Dicer expression in both MCF-7 breast cancer cells and A549 lung cancer cells, resulting in their enhanced sensitivity to cisplatin, a known attribute of Dicer knockdown. This was further supported by reporter assay using full length 3'-untranslated region (UTR) of Dicer. Our findings not only revealed Dicer to be a direct target of miR-31, but also demonstrated that isomiRs displayed similar and disparate regulation of target genes in cell-based systems. Coupled with the variations in the distribution of isomiRs among different cells or conditions, our findings support the possibility of fine-tuning gene expression by miRNAs.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • 3' Untranslated Regions
  • Cisplatin / pharmacology
  • DEAD-box RNA Helicases / genetics*
  • Drug Resistance, Neoplasm
  • Gene Expression Profiling
  • Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic*
  • Genetic Variation
  • High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing
  • Humans
  • Luciferases
  • MCF-7 Cells
  • MicroRNAs / metabolism*
  • Oligonucleotides / genetics
  • Plasmids
  • Protein Isoforms / metabolism
  • RNA, Messenger / metabolism
  • Ribonuclease III / genetics*

Substances

  • 3' Untranslated Regions
  • MIRN31 microRNA, human
  • MicroRNAs
  • Oligonucleotides
  • Protein Isoforms
  • RNA, Messenger
  • Luciferases
  • DICER1 protein, human
  • Ribonuclease III
  • DEAD-box RNA Helicases
  • Cisplatin

Grants and funding

This work was supported in part by Academia Sinica and grant 98-2320-B-001-001- (2009) from National Science Council of Taiwan. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.