Comment by derivt | Hacker News Reader

Comment by derivt | Hacker News Reader

Don't know anything about RNA, but I wonder if some kind of small virus could be used to test the micro RNA transport hypothesis. Googling "micro RNA virus", first link is https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21431678 . The paper seems promising, since 2004, more than 200 microRNAs (miRNAs) have been discovered in double-stranded DNA viruses, mainly herpesviruses and polyomaviruses.This chapter aims to summarize our current knowledge of viral miRNAs, their targets and function, and the challenges lying ahead to decipher their role in viral biology.

Using microRNA virus to test the sperm transport mechanism seems to be a good idea. Glooging for "microRNA virus sperm transport" suggest the link: Intercellular Transport of MicroRNAs (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3580056/), This review brings into focus what is currently known and outstanding in a novel field of study with applicability to cardiovascular disease.

So, perhaps sperm transport of microRNA could be tested using some RNAvirus to produce cardiovascular desease.

So you’re suggesting injecting viral miRNA into the epididymis of parental mice and checking for symptoms of viral infection in the offspring? This won’t work because (a) the miRNA isn’t the whole virus, it probably won’t have a clearly discernible phenotype; and (b) the mechanism suggested here relies on specific vesicles. Export of small RNAs into vesicles isn’t an automatic process, it requires active targeting of the RNA inside the cells for export (RNAs essentially need to carry a “luggage tag” that directs the cell machinery to envelope it with a membrane and send it out).

Still, your fundamental idea has some merits. A more promising experiment would forego viral RNA and instead mutate the specific miRNA-206 in mice to carry a specific signature. Sequencing the resulting embryo in early development could show whether the mutated miRNA was taken up. I say “could” because there are fairly big caveat: miRNAs are short-lived (unless they are actively regenerated) and the concentrations may be too low to pick up a signal.

The experiment you suggest seems promising. As a math teacher, I don't know about this field. But to suggest experiments that "could" prove or support and hypothesis is a good way to advance science. Thanks for our suggestions. As a Ph.D. math teacher I don't know about this field.

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