Functional and Mechanistic Diversity of RNA Silencing in Fungi

Dear Colleagues,

RNA silencing is a conserved mechanism that suppresses gene expression by targeting RNA transcripts for degradation or translational repression, and DNA sequences for transcriptional inhibition. The mechanism uses small RNA molecules (sRNAs) and sequence-specific pairing to designate its target sequences, providing a varied landscape of different pathways and types of sRNAs. In fungi, evolution was particularly prolific, designing a wide diversity of pathways and sRNAs. Thus, specific pathways produce their peculiar sRNAs, controlling different cellular functions such as defense, genome integrity, and gene regulation. This Special Issue on RNA silencing recapitulates updated overviews and original research on the different types of sRNAs and RNA-silencing pathways in fungi. Moreover, this compilation pays particular attention to the functional roles of RNA silencing in physiology and pathogenesis, without leaving out the increasing applied uses of this mechanism in fungal studies.

Scope

This Special Issue contemplates a broad scope encompassing the basic and applied concepts and technologies involved in the study of RNA silencing in fungi. It covers a broad range of subjects in research on fungal RNA silencing, including the mechanisms and machinery of different silencing pathways: transgene-induced silencing, endogenous gene regulation, epimutational pathways, non-canonical variants, sex-induced silencing, and the diversity of small RNAs in fungi such as siRNAs, masiRNAs, esRNAs, ex-siRNAs, milRNAs, qiRNAs, and rdRNAs. This Special Issue will also consider manuscripts on functional studies and the role of RNA silencing in fungal pathogenesis.

Dr. Francisco E. Nicolás Molina
Guest Editor

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