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Construction of Ligand-Responsive MicroRNAs that Operate Through Inhibition of Drosha Processing

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Artificial Riboswitches

Part of the book series: Methods in Molecular Biology ((MIMB,volume 1111))

Abstract

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) offer powerful tools for targeted gene silencing in almost all eukaryotes. These tools have received considerable attention for their utility in both fundamental genetic studies and as therapeutic agents. Rendering individual microRNAs responsive to endogenous or exogenously applied molecules (or ligands) can improve the stringency of silencing and can mediate autonomous control. This chapter describes the construction of ligand-responsive miRNAs that undergo reduced processing and subsequent gene silencing when bound by the recognized ligand. Following a simple set of rules, the engineered microRNAs can be readily modified to target different sequences and to bind different ligands. Individual miRNAs also can be incorporated into the same transcript for tunable, multi-gene silencing.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by North Carolina State University (start-up funds to CLB), the National Science Foundation (fellowship to RJB), the National Institutes of Health (RC1GM091298), and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (HR0011-11-2-0002).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, CA, USA

    Chase L. Beisel

  2. Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA, USA

    Ryan J. Bloom & Christina D. Smolke

Authors
  1. Chase L. Beisel
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  2. Ryan J. Bloom
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  3. Christina D. Smolke
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Ehime University, Matsuyama, Ehime, Japan

    Atsushi Ogawa

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© 2014 Springer Science+Business Media New York

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Beisel, C.L., Bloom, R.J., Smolke, C.D. (2014). Construction of Ligand-Responsive MicroRNAs that Operate Through Inhibition of Drosha Processing. In: Ogawa, A. (eds) Artificial Riboswitches. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 1111. Humana Press, Totowa, NJ. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-62703-755-6_19

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-62703-755-6_19

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  • Publisher Name: Humana Press, Totowa, NJ

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-62703-754-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-62703-755-6

  • eBook Packages: Springer Protocols

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