DGCR8 HITS-CLIP reveals novel functions for the Microprocessor (CLIP-seq)

The Drosha-DGCR8 complex (Microprocessor) is required for microRNA (miRNA) biogenesis. DGCR8 contains two double-stranded RNA binding motifs that recognize the RNA substrate, whereas Drosha functions as the endonuclease. We have used high-throughput sequencing of RNAs isolated by crosslinking immunoprecipitation (HITS-CLIP) to identify endogenous RNA targets of DGCR8 in mammalian cells. Unexpectedly, miRNAs were not the most abundant targets. DGCR8-bound RNAs comprised several hundred mRNAs as well as snoRNAs and long non-coding RNAs. We found that DGCR8 together with Drosha controls the abundance of several mRNAs, as well as long non-coding RNAs, such as MALAT-1. By contrast, the DGCR8-mediated cleavage of snoRNAs is independent of Drosha, suggesting the involvement of DGCR8 in cellular complexes with other endonucleases. Interestingly, binding of DGCR8 to cassette exons, acts as a novel mechanism to regulate the relative abundance of alternatively spliced isoforms. Collectively, these data provide new insights in the complex role of DGCR8 in controlling the fate of several classes of RNAs. Overall design: Comparison of RNAs associated to both endogenous (D8) and overexpressed (T7) DGCR8 in HEK293T cells