Mime-seq 2.0: a method to sequence microRNAs from specific mouse cell types.

The description of precise miRNA expression patterns is crucial to understand what these small RNAs contribute to animal development and physiology. High-throughput sequencing of miRNAs from individual developmental stages has provided insight into temporal regulation but often lacks the cellular resolution to link miRNA-function to the biology of distinct cell types within complex tissues. Mime-seq 2.0 takes advantage of an engineered methyltransferase to methylate miRNAs in vivo in mice in cell types of interest. This chemical small RNA-tagging approach is followed by chemo-selective, high-throughput sequencing that enables the identification of tissue- and cell type-specific miRNA profiles in a sensitive and reproducible manner. Flow cytometry data produced as part of this study to investigate phenotypic consequences of methyltransferase expression (HENMTdc-T6B) is reposited here at BioStudies.