Co-regulation of miRNA biogenesis and alternative pre-mRNA splicing of host gene

This study focuses on two post-transcriptional gene expression regulatory mechanisms found ubiquitously in the body and widely expressed in neuronal tissue: host gene pre-messenger RNA (pre-mRNA) alternative splicing and microRNA (miRNA) biogenesis. Most of the past research has primarily looked at how miRNAs regulate gene expression at the pre-mRNA level, and little has been done on how these two processes coexist. We hypothesized that the two processes are co-regulated when the miRNA is located within the intron of a pre-mRNA, and that miRNA biogenesis impacts the inclusion of alternative exons in the final mRNA transcript. Our results revealed that manipulations to both processes had effects on the other process. We conclude that some level of co-regulation exists between these two processes, and that the Microprocessor may have some role in alternative splicing.