SGS3 Activators

SGS3 (Suppressor of Gene Silencing 3) is a protein that plays a significant role in the RNA silencing pathway in plants. RNA silencing is a crucial regulatory mechanism in eukaryotic organisms that controls gene expression and defends against viruses. It involves small RNAs, such as small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) and microRNAs (miRNAs), which guide the silencing machinery to specific RNA targets to block their translation or to degrade them.SGS3 was first identified in Arabidopsis thaliana, a model organism for plant biology research. It is involved in the post-transcriptional gene silencing (PTGS) pathway, particularly in the biogenesis of trans-acting siRNAs (ta-siRNAs). These ta-siRNAs are a class of small RNAs that mediate gene silencing at the post-transcriptional level and are involved in a variety of developmental processes and stress responses in plants.

The SGS3 protein interacts with RNA-DEPENDENT RNA POLYMERASE 6 (RDR6) and DICER-LIKE 4 (DCL4), two other key components in the RNA silencing pathway. This interaction is essential for the production of double-stranded RNA, which is then processed into ta-siRNAs. SGS3 is unique in that it binds to single-stranded RNA featuring a 5' overhang, a feature characteristic of the precursors of ta-siRNAs.