Synergistic regulatory networks mediated by microRNAs and transcription factors under drought, heat and salt stresses in Oryza Sativa spp.

Abstract

NBackground Transcription factors (TFs) and microRNAs (miRNAs) are primary gene regulators within the cell. Regulatory mechanisms of these two main regulators are of great interest to biologists and may provide insights into the abiotic and biotic stresses. However, the interaction between miRNAs and TFs in a gene regulatory network (GRN) still remains uncovered. Previous research has been mostly directed at inferring either miRNA or TF regulatory networks from data. However, networks involving a single type of regulator may not fully reveal the complex gene regulatory mechanisms, therefore study of interplay among these two regulators in gene regulation is important towards explaining the mechanism of different abiotic stresses.