ArticleMolecular cell2013
An ancient transcription factor initiates the burst of piRNA production during early meiosis in mouse testes.
Article in Molecular cell, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 243 papers.
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Who cites it
243 citing papers in PubMed, 414 citations in OpenAlex.
- Article
- Dietary effects on cytosolic and mitochondrial tRNA abundance and modification patterns across mouse tissues.Genome research · 2026Article
- The pachytene-specific lncRNANon-coding RNA research · 2026Article
- Conserved enhancer association of piRNAs and the implication in germ cell fate surveillance.Genome biology · 2026Article
- Retrovirus insertions in host transcripts trigger de novo piRNA immunity.The EMBO journal · 2026Article
- In thebioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Spatiotemporal control of PIWI compartmentalization by mitochondrial scaffolds defines pachytene piRNA pathway organization.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2026Article
- Transcription factor NFYA directs male meiotic entry by regulating accessible chromatin at meiotic promoters in mice.The EMBO journal · 2026Article
- Article
- piRNA: Molecular Mechanisms from Germline Silencing to Somatic Regulation and Roles in Disease.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Review
- Integrated small and long RNA sequencing reveals piRNA mediated transposon repression during human oogenesis.Nature communications · 2026Article
- A mammalian-like piRNA pathway in Axolotl reveals the origins of piRNA-directed DNA methylation.The EMBO journal · 2026Article
- The 3D genome during germline development and meiosis.Trends in genetics : TIG · 2026Review
- Reproductive phasiRNAs are the piRNAs of plants.Trends in genetics : TIG · 2026Review
- DAXX governs the silencing of LINE1 during spermatogenesis in mice.Nucleic acids research · 2026Article
- Spatiotemporal control of PIWI compartmentalization by mitochondrial scaffolds defines pachytene piRNA pathway organization.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
- PIWI proteins tether the piRNA biogenesis machinery to mitochondria during mammalian spermatogenesis.The EMBO journal · 2025Article
- Genetic polymorphisms lead to major, locus-specific, variation in piRNA production in mouse.The EMBO journal · 2025Article
- ZBTB16/PLZF regulates juvenile spermatogonial stem cell development through an extensive transcription factor poising network.Nature structural & molecular biology · 2025Article
- CTCF-mediated 3D chromatin sets up the gene expression program in the male germline.Nature structural & molecular biology · 2025Article
183 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
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Authors and funding
11 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Animal germ cells produce PIWI-interacting RNAs (piRNAs), small silencing RNAs that suppress transposons and enable gamete maturation. Mammalian transposon-silencing piRNAs accumulate early in spermatogenesis, whereas pachytene piRNAs are produced later during postnatal spermatogenesis and account for >95% of all piRNAs in the adult mouse testis. Mutants defective for pachytene piRNA pathway proteins fail to produce mature sperm, but neither the piRNA precursor transcripts nor the trigger for pachytene piRNA production is known. Here, we show that the transcription factor A-MYB initiates pachytene piRNA production. A-MYB drives transcription of both pachytene piRNA precursor RNAs and the mRNAs for core piRNA biogenesis factors including MIWI, the protein through which pachytene piRNAs function. A-MYB regulation of piRNA pathway proteins and piRNA genes creates a coherent feedforward loop that ensures the robust accumulation of pachytene piRNAs. This regulatory circuit, which can be detected in rooster testes, likely predates the divergence of birds and mammals.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.