Computational Identification of microRNA-like Elements in Leishmania major

Leishmaniasis represents endemic infections that occur predominantly, in tropical and sub-tropical regions. The current situation for the chemotherapy of leishmaniasis is more promising than it has been for several decades with both new drugs and new formulations of old drugs either recently approved or in clinical trials. Investigations focused on parasite biology and identification of novel drug targets have become of great importance. The identification and characterization of microRNA (miRNAs) in the parasite and their possible biological action hopefully facilitate the discovery of potential antiparasitic drug targets against leishmaniasis. microRNA and other small RNA transcripts are derived from distinct loci in the genome and play critical roles in RNA–mediated gene silencing mechanisms in the organisms. miRNAs regulate mRNA stability through perfect and imperfect match to the targets. The biological activities of miRNAs have been related to many biological events, from resistant to microbe infections to cellular differentiation. miRNA like-elements have been identified in Leishmania major. Identification of miRNA-like elements in L. major provides a foundation for subsequent functional studies. Computational strategies provide an efficient manner to predict miRNA genes and their targets. Twenty-five potential miRNA-like elements in different chromosomes (chr.) like chr. 7th, 8th, 17th, 18th, 21st, 23rd, 25th, 26th, 29th, 31st, 32nd, 33rd, 34th and 35th of L. major have been identified. It is known from this study that the target genes of miRNA-like elements involve multidrug resistant protein such as ABC transporter, ribosomal protein, RNA binding proteins, hydrolase and exonuclease.