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REVIEW

piRNAs—the ancient hunters of genome invaders

¹ Gene Center of the Ludwig-Maximilians-University, D-81377 München, Germany; ² Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0032; ³ PRESTO, Japan Science and Technology Agency, Saitama, 332-0012, Japan; ⁴ Munich Center for integrated Protein Science (CiPS^M), D-81377 München, Germany

In addition to miRNAs and siRNAs, a third small RNA silencing system has been uncovered that prevents the spreading of selfish genetic elements. Production of the Piwi-associated RNAs (piRNAs), which mediate the silencing activity in this pathway, is initiated at a few master control regions within the genome. The nature of the primary piRNA-generating transcript is still unknown, but RNA interference (RNAi)-like cleavage events are likely defining the 5'-ends of mature piRNAs. We summarize the recent literature on piRNA biogenesis and function with an emphasis on work in Drosophila, where genetics and biochemistry have met very successfully.

[Keywords: Drosophila melanogaster; Stellate; piRNAs]

E-MAIL Foerstemann{at}lmb.uni-muenchen.de; FAX 49-89-218076945

⁶ E-MAIL tomari{at}iam.u-tokyo.ac.jp; FAX 81-3-5841-8485.

Article is online at http://www.genesdev.org/cgi/doi/10.1101/gad.1567007

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