ArticleDevelopmental cell2022
piRNAs initiate transcriptional silencing of spermatogenic genes during C. elegans germline development.
Article in Developmental cell, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 35 papers.
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35 citing papers in PubMed, 52 citations in OpenAlex.
- Programmed DNA elimination was present in the last common ancestor ofbioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Review
- piRNA: Molecular Mechanisms from Germline Silencing to Somatic Regulation and Roles in Disease.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Review
- Decoding Argonaute specificity: insights fromRNA (New York, N.Y.) · 2026Review
- MUTACLASH: identifying functional small RNA target sites using crosslinking-induced mutations.RNA (New York, N.Y.) · 2026Article
- Nuclear Argonaute HRDE-1 Maintains Chromatin-Independent Transcriptional Silencing through a Transgenerational Small RNA Feedback Loop.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
- piRNA gene density and SUMOylation organize piRNA transcriptional condensate formation.Nature structural & molecular biology · 2025Article
- Review
- Regulation of MORC-1 is key to the CSR-1-mediated germline gene licensing mechanism inScience advances · 2025Article
- WAGO-1 is a sexually dimorphic Argonaute protein required for proper germ granule structure and gametogenesis.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
- RNA Helicase A promotes small RNA biogenesis and sorting in germ cells.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
- Nucleoporins shape germ granule architecture and balance small RNA silencing pathways.Nature communications · 2025Article
- Functions and mechanisms of eukaryotic RNA-guided programmed DNA elimination.Biochemical Society transactions · 2025Review
- Analysis of crosslinking sites suggestsbioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
- Cracking the code: how piRNA pathway shapes spermatogenesis and combats male infertility.Frontiers in cell and developmental biology · 2025Review
- Pachytene piRNAs control discrete meiotic events during spermatogenesis and restrict gene expression in space and time.Science advances · 2024Article
- Potential molecular mechanisms and clinical implications of piRNAs in preeclampsia: a review.Reproductive biology and endocrinology : RB&E · 2024Review
- Article
- Characterization of the distribution and dynamics of chromatin states in theGenome research · 2024Article
- HRDE-2 drives small RNA specificity for the nuclear Argonaute protein HRDE-1.Nature communications · 2024Article
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9 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Eukaryotic genomes harbor invading transposable elements that are silenced by PIWI-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) to maintain genome integrity in animal germ cells. However, whether piRNAs also regulate endogenous gene expression programs remains unclear. Here, we show that C. elegans piRNAs trigger the transcriptional silencing of hundreds of spermatogenic genes during spermatogenesis, promoting sperm differentiation and function. This silencing signal requires piRNA-dependent small RNA biogenesis and loading into downstream nuclear effectors, which correlates with the dynamic reorganization of two distinct perinuclear biomolecular condensates present in germ cells. In addition, the silencing capacity of piRNAs is temporally counteracted by the Argonaute CSR-1, which targets and licenses spermatogenic gene transcription. The spatial and temporal overlap between these opposing small RNA pathways contributes to setting up the timing of the spermatogenic differentiation program. Thus, our work identifies a prominent role for piRNAs as direct regulators of endogenous transcriptional programs during germline development and gamete differentiation.
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