| Budget Amount *help |
¥45,760,000 (Direct Cost: ¥35,200,000、Indirect Cost: ¥10,560,000)
Fiscal Year 2014: ¥14,170,000 (Direct Cost: ¥10,900,000、Indirect Cost: ¥3,270,000)
Fiscal Year 2013: ¥14,950,000 (Direct Cost: ¥11,500,000、Indirect Cost: ¥3,450,000)
Fiscal Year 2012: ¥16,640,000 (Direct Cost: ¥12,800,000、Indirect Cost: ¥3,840,000)
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| Outline of Final Research Achievements |
piRNAs are germ cell specific non-coding small RNAs, which play crucial roles on gene silencing of retrotransposons in embryonic male germ cells. We carried out the analyses on the molecular mechanisms of piRNA biogenesis and the functional properties of the piRNAs, and obtained the following results. First, GPAT2 (glycerol-3-phosophate acyltransferase 2), a mitochondria outer-membrane protein with the enzymatic activity of lipid metabolism, was essential for the production of piRNAs. Second, piRNA other than retrotransposon-related ones was successfully produced in transgenic mouse model. Third, the artificially introduced non-retrotransposon piRNAs gave rise to DNA methylation and subsequent gene silencing in the male germ cells. These results provide new insights in the characteristics of piRNAs.
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