Dicer
Dicer
Dicer (/ˈdaɪsər/) is a protein involved in the RNA interference pathway and is responsible for the final step of microRNA (miRNA) and small interfering RNA (siRNA) biogenesis.
Etymology
The term "Dicer" is derived from its role in "dicing" or cutting double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) into short double-stranded fragments of 20 nucleotides long, which are known as siRNA.
Function
Dicer functions as a ribonuclease and is required for the RNA interference pathway. It cleaves long dsRNA and pre-microRNA into short double-stranded RNA fragments called siRNA and miRNA respectively. These fragments are then incorporated into the RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC), which targets and degrades complementary RNA.
Related Terms
- RNA interference: A biological process in which RNA molecules inhibit gene expression or translation, by neutralizing targeted mRNA molecules.
- MicroRNA: A small non-coding RNA molecule that functions in RNA silencing and post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression.
- Small interfering RNA: A class of double-stranded RNA molecules, 20-25 base pairs in length, involved in the RNA interference (RNAi) pathway.
- Ribonuclease: An enzyme that catalyzes the degradation of RNA into smaller components.
- RNA-induced silencing complex: A multiprotein complex, essentially composed of small RNAs (miRNA or siRNA) and Argonaute proteins, that triggers degradation of other RNA molecules.
External links
- Medical encyclopedia article on Dicer
- Wikipedia's article - Dicer
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