Differential expression of miRNAs and their target genes in senescing leaves and siliques: insights from massive sequencing of small RNAs and cleaved target RNAs

To identify senescence-regulation of miRNAs in Arabidopsis thaliana, eight small RNA libraries were constructed and sequenced at four different stages of development and senescence from both leaves and siliques. Parallel Analysis of RNA Ends (PARE) libraries were also constructed and sequenced to enable the large-scale examination of miRNA-guided cleavage products. Genome-wide small RNA profiling was done by Illumina TruSeq sample preparation followed by high-throughput sequencing with Illumina HiSeq 2000 platform.