RNA interference Flashcards
RISC
RNA-induced silencing complex. RNAi is a biological process that involves the use of small RNA molecules, such as microRNA (miRNA) or small interfering RNA (siRNA), to regulate gene expression.
The RISC complex is a key component of the RNAi pathway. It is a multi-protein complex that contains the small RNA molecule as well as several proteins, including Argonaute (AGO) proteins, which are the core component of RISC. The small RNA molecule guides RISC to the target messenger RNA (mRNA) molecule, which is then cleaved by the AGO protein, resulting in the silencing of the target gene.
Overall, the RNAi pathway and the RISC complex play important roles in a wide range of biological processes, including development, differentiation, and disease
What is RNAi?
RNA interference (RNAi) can be used to decrease the expression of (or “knock down”) a specific protein to study the effects on the organism.
Why use dsRNA not antisense/sense RNA?
dsRNA is rare in mammalian cells. Most of us have ssRNA. dsRNA is either virus or formed due to transposons. Risc is in place to cut up the cDNA to one of the strand of dsRNA to keep virus or transposons in check.
