In animals, small noncoding RNAs that are expressed in the germline and transmitted to progeny control gene expression to promote fertility. Germline-expressed small RNAs, including endogenous small interfering RNAs (endo-siRNAs) and Piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs), drive the repression of deleterious transcripts such as transposons, repetitive elements, and pseudogenes. Recent studies have highlighted an important role for small RNAs in transgenerational epigenetic inheritance via regulation of heritable chromatin marks; therefore, small RNAs are thought to convey an epigenetic memory of genomic self and nonself elements. Small RNA pathways are highly conserved in metazoans and have been best described for the model organism Caenorhabditis elegans. In this review, we describe the biogenesis, regulation, and function of C. elegans endo-siRNAs and piRNAs, along with recent insights into how these distinct pathways are integrated to collectively regulate germline gene expression, transgenerational epigenetic inheritance, and ultimately, animal fertility.

中文翻译：

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胚芽小RNA对秀丽隐杆线虫染色质景观的多代调节。

在动物中，在种系中表达并传递给后代的小型非编码RNA控制基因表达以促进繁殖。生殖细胞表达的小RNA，包括内源性小干扰RNA（endo-siRNA）和与Piwi相互作用的RNA（piRNA），可抑制有害转录物的转录，如转座子，重复元件和假基因。最近的研究强调了小RNA通过调节遗传染色质标记在跨代表观遗传中的重要作用。因此，小RNA被认为传达了基因组自身和非自身成分的表观遗传记忆。小RNA途径在后生动物中高度保守，并且对于模型生物秀丽隐杆线虫（Caenorhabditis elegans）已得到最好的描述。在这篇综述中，我们描述了C的生物发生，调控和功能。