Functional prediction of human erythrocytic miR-451a on Plasmodium falciparum 3D7 transcriptome—an in-silico study

Abstract

Background: Plasmodium falciparum (P. falciparum) is one of the deadliest species responsible for the major deaths related to malaria. Recently emerging research has focused on small noncoding RNAs especially mature microRNAs (miRNAs) (19-25 nts) which play regulatory role chiefly by targeting mRNAs' cleavage or translational repression. During infection, parasitic Plasmodium invades and takes command of the host cell for its survival and develops into its various life stages. Seeing that host, miRNAs considered as chief regulators of various physiological functions of the cell itself. During erythrocytic stages, possible interactions between the erythrocytic miRNAs and Plasmodium mRNAs may affect parasite biology and its survival inside the host cell. It has been also reported that during erythrocytic stages of P. falciparum, erythrocytic miRNAs may translocate into the parasite phosphorous vacuole, some of them may forming a chimera with Plasmodium mRNAs to get involved in post transcriptional regulation.Methods: In this study, one of the most abundant human erythrocytic miR-451a retrieved from miRbase and targeted on P. falciparum 3D7 transcriptome to find out the target genes and followed by annotation studies performed of targeted genes.Results: We identified crucial gene targets of P. falciparum using PSRNA target tool. Functional annotation of targeted genes and their protein products help us to understand the possible protein-protein interaction during the course of infection as well as analysis of their functions at molecular/cellular/biological level shows the significant contribution from the cytoskeletal genes which codes for the proteins like Plasmodium falciparum 3D7 erythrocyte membrane protein 1 (PfEMP1), rifin, etc. which are involved in the host membrane modifications.Conclusions: Computational approach to elucidate the erythrocytic microRNA (miRNA) targeted genes and their functional annotation studies will help to understand the possible interactions and miRNA regulatory network in malaria.