microRNA-129-5p is regulated by choline availability and controls EGF receptor synthesis and neurogenesis in the cerebral cortex

What is it about?

Little is known about how dietary choline exerts its long lasting effects on cognition. Our recent studies in mice suggest that choline may regulate gene and protein expression in the developing brain through affecting the function of short sequences of ribonucleic acid, termed microRNA's. Each microRNA, in turn, can inhibit production of multiple different protein. We find that when dietary choline intake during pregnancy is low, one of the microRNAs, miR-129-5p, is present in the developing brain at incorrect levels. In this study, we evaluated how dietary choline regulates expression of miR-129-5p and its target, epidermal growth factor receptor, during brain development and uncovered the molecular links between choline availability and regulation of brain development.

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