12. 3. 2024

New pathways for the regulation of gene expression by small RNAs in plants

Mgr. Vojtěch Čermák, Ph.D.

(Faculty of Science - Department of Experimental Plant Biology)

Připojte se online: meet.google.com/qhf-etyu-sna

Small RNAs (sRNAs) play an important role in the regulation of gene expression, chromatin modifications as well as defense against viruses and transposons. Argonaut proteins (AGOs) are key components in the sRNA pathways. They bind sRNAs, allowing them to recognize target nucleic acids based on sequence complementarity. The interaction of AGOs with other proteins can be facilitated by a specific AGO-binding domain (AGO-hook), which has been identified in various proteins. One such protein is SPT6L, a transcription elongation factor and histone chaperone of RNA polymerase II. Our research shows that SPT6L also colocalizes with the plant-specific RNA polymerase V, an essential component of the RNA-directed DNA methylation (RdDM) pathway. We aim to characterize the role of the AGO-hook of SPT6L in both Pol II and Pol V complexes.

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