Mem Inst Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, 112(8) August 2017
Short communication
Evidence for regulated expression of Telomeric Repeat-containing RNAs (TERRA) in parasitic trypanosomatids
1Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Departamento de Biologia Celular e Molecular e Bioagentes Patogênicos, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brasil
2Yale University School of Public Health, Department of Epidemiology of Microbial Diseases, New Haven, CT, USA
The Telomeric Repeat-containing RNAs (TERRA) participate in the homeostasis of telomeres in higher eukaryotes. Here, we investigated the expression of TERRA in Leishmania spp. and Trypanosoma brucei and found evidences for its expression as a specific RNA class. The trypanosomatid TERRA are heterogeneous in size and partially polyadenylated. The levels of TERRA transcripts appear to be modulated through the life cycle in both trypanosomatids investigated, suggesting that TERRA play a stage-specific role in the life cycle of these early-branching eukaryotes.
