XRN2 is an evolutionarily conserved 5’-to-3’ exoribonuclease, which degrades or trims various types of RNA in the nucleus. Although XRN-2 is essential for embryogenesis, larval development and reproduction in
Caenorhabditis elegans
, relevant molecular pathways remain unidentified. Here we create a germline-specific
xrn-2
conditional mutant and perform a mutagenesis screen for suppressors of sterility. Loss-of-function alleles of
dpy-10
,
osr-1
,
ptr-6
and
C34C12.2
genes are identified. Depletion of DPY-10, OSR-1 or PTR-6 increases expression of
gpdh-1
that encodes a glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase, thereby elevates glycerol accumulation to suppress sterility of the mutant. The C34C12.2 protein is predominantly localized in the nucleolus of germ cells and shows a similarity to
Saccharomyces cerevisiae
Net1, which is involved in rDNA silencing. Depletion of NRDE-2, a putative interacting partner of C34C12.2 and a component of the nuclear RNAi machinery, restores fertility to the
xrn-2
conditional mutant. These results may help to identify an essential role of XRN-2 in germline development.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.