Evolution of the human-specific microRNA miR-941

Hai Yang Hu, Liu He, Kseniya Fominykh, Zheng Yan, Song Guo, Xiaoyu Zhang, Martin S. Taylor, Lin Tang, Jie Li, Jianmei Liu, Wen Wang, Haijing Yu () and Philipp Khaitovich ()
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Hai Yang Hu: CAS Key Laboratory of Computational Biology, CAS-MPG Partner Institute for Computational Biology
Liu He: CAS Key Laboratory of Computational Biology, CAS-MPG Partner Institute for Computational Biology
Kseniya Fominykh: CAS Key Laboratory of Computational Biology, CAS-MPG Partner Institute for Computational Biology
Zheng Yan: CAS Key Laboratory of Computational Biology, CAS-MPG Partner Institute for Computational Biology
Song Guo: CAS Key Laboratory of Computational Biology, CAS-MPG Partner Institute for Computational Biology
Xiaoyu Zhang: CAS Key Laboratory of Computational Biology, CAS-MPG Partner Institute for Computational Biology
Martin S. Taylor: MRC Human Genetics Unit, Institute of Genetics and Molecular Medicine, University of Edinburgh
Lin Tang: CAS Key Laboratory of Computational Biology, CAS-MPG Partner Institute for Computational Biology
Jie Li: The School of Life Sciences and Laboratory for Conservation and Utilization of Bio-resources, Yunnan University
Jianmei Liu: The School of Life Sciences and Laboratory for Conservation and Utilization of Bio-resources, Yunnan University
Wen Wang: State Key Laboratory of Evolution and Genetic Resources, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Haijing Yu: The School of Life Sciences and Laboratory for Conservation and Utilization of Bio-resources, Yunnan University
Philipp Khaitovich: CAS Key Laboratory of Computational Biology, CAS-MPG Partner Institute for Computational Biology

Nature Communications, 2012, vol. 3, issue 1, 1-10

Abstract: Abstract MicroRNA-mediated gene regulation is important in many physiological processes. Here we explore the roles of a microRNA, miR-941, in human evolution. We find that miR-941 emerged de novo in the human lineage, between six and one million years ago, from an evolutionarily volatile tandem repeat sequence. Its copy-number remains polymorphic in humans and shows a trend for decreasing copy-number with migration out of Africa. Emergence of miR-941 was accompanied by accelerated loss of miR-941-binding sites, presumably to escape regulation. We further show that miR-941 is highly expressed in pluripotent cells, repressed upon differentiation and preferentially targets genes in hedgehog- and insulin-signalling pathways, thus suggesting roles in cellular differentiation. Human-specific effects of miR-941 regulation are detectable in the brain and affect genes involved in neurotransmitter signalling. Taken together, these results implicate miR-941 in human evolution, and provide an example of rapid regulatory evolution in the human linage.

Date: 2012
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DOI: 10.1038/ncomms2146

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