{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,11]],"date-time":"2025-10-11T02:11:05Z","timestamp":1760148665043,"version":"build-2065373602"},"reference-count":59,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"11","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2023,5,26]],"date-time":"2023-05-26T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1685059200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/100006111","name":"Found Animal Foundation","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["D1112-F13","04396"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["D1112-F13","04396"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100006111","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100000038","name":"Natural Sciences and Engineering Council (NSERC)","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["D1112-F13","04396"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["D1112-F13","04396"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100000038","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["IJMS"],"abstract":"<jats:p>The PIWI clade of Argonaute proteins is essential for spermatogenesis in all species examined to date. This protein family binds specific classes of small non-coding RNAs known as PIWI-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) which together form piRNA-induced silencing complexes (piRISCs) that are recruited to specific RNA targets through sequence complementarity. These complexes facilitate gene silencing through endonuclease activity and guided recruitment of epigenetic silencing factors. PIWI proteins and piRNAs have been found to play multiple roles in the testis including the maintenance of genomic integrity through transposon silencing and facilitating the turnover of coding RNAs during spermatogenesis. In the present study, we report the first characterization of PIWIL1 in the male domestic cat, a mammalian system predicted to express four PIWI family members. Multiple transcript variants of PIWIL1 were cloned from feline testes cDNA. One isoform shows high homology to PIWIL1 from other mammals, however, the other has characteristics of a \u201cslicer null\u201d isoform, lacking the domain required for endonuclease activity. Expression of PIWIL1 in the male cat appears limited to the testis and correlates with sexual maturity. RNA-immunoprecipitation revealed that feline PIWIL1 binds small RNAs with an average size of 29 nt. Together, these data suggest that the domestic cat has two PIWIL1 isoforms expressed in the mature testis, at least one of which interacts with piRNAs.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ijms24119346","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2023,5,27]],"date-time":"2023-05-27T16:19:37Z","timestamp":1685204377000},"page":"9346","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["cDNA Cloning of Feline PIWIL1 and Evaluation of Expression in the Testis of the Domestic Cat"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"24","author":[{"given":"Leanne","family":"Stalker","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedical Sciences, Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, Canada"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-1877-0252","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Alanna G.","family":"Backx","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedical Sciences, Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, Canada"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Allison K.","family":"Tscherner","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedical Sciences, Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, Canada"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Stewart J.","family":"Russell","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedical Sciences, Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, Canada"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Robert A.","family":"Foster","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pathobiology, Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W12, Canada"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3956-3041","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jonathan","family":"LaMarre","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedical Sciences, Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, Canada"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2023,5,26]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"853","DOI":"10.1126\/science.1064921","article-title":"Identification of novel genes coding for small expressed RNAs","volume":"294","author":"Rauhut","year":"2001","journal-title":"Science"},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"522","DOI":"10.1016\/j.cell.2009.03.040","article-title":"Specialized piRNA Pathways Act in Germline and Somatic Tissues of the Drosophila Ovary","volume":"137","author":"Malone","year":"2009","journal-title":"Cell"},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"761","DOI":"10.1126\/science.1146484","article-title":"The Piwi-piRNA pathway provides an adaptive defense in the transposon arms race","volume":"318","author":"Aravin","year":"2007","journal-title":"Science"},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1732","DOI":"10.1101\/gad.1425706","article-title":"Identification and characterization of two novel classes of small RNAs in the mouse germline: Retrotransposon-derived siRNAs in oocytes and germline small RNAs in testes","volume":"20","author":"Watanabe","year":"2006","journal-title":"Genes Dev."},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1709","DOI":"10.1101\/gad.1434406","article-title":"A novel class of small RNAs in mouse spermatogenic cells","volume":"20","author":"Grivna","year":"2006","journal-title":"Genes Dev."},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"259","DOI":"10.1038\/nature10547","article-title":"The endonuclease activity of Mili fuels piRNA amplification that silences LINE1 elements","volume":"480","author":"Bartonicek","year":"2011","journal-title":"Nature"},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"69","DOI":"10.1016\/j.cell.2007.03.026","article-title":"A role for Piwi and piRNAs in germ cell maintenance and transposon silencing in Zebrafish","volume":"129","author":"Houwing","year":"2007","journal-title":"Cell"},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"203","DOI":"10.1038\/nature04916","article-title":"A novel class of small RNAs bind to MILI protein in mouse testes","volume":"442","author":"Aravin","year":"2006","journal-title":"Nature"},{"key":"ref_9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"13415","DOI":"10.1073\/pnas.0605506103","article-title":"MIWI associates with translational machinery and PIWI-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) in regulating spermatogenesis","volume":"103","author":"Grivna","year":"2006","journal-title":"Proc. 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