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Nuage are Drosophila melanogaster germline granules. Nuage are the hallmark of Drosophila melanogaster germline cells, which have an electron-dense perinuclear structure and can silence the selfish genetic elements in Drosophila melanogaster.[1] The term 'Nuage' comes from the French word for 'cloud', as they appear as nebulous electron-dense bodies by electron microscopy. They are found in nurse cells of the developing Drosophila melanogaster egg chamber and are composed of various types of proteins, including RNA-helicases, Tudor domain proteins, Piwi-clade Argonaute proteins, in addition to a PRMT5 methylosome composed of Capsuléen and its co-factor, Valois (MEP50).

See piRNA for more information.

References

  1. ^ Lim AK, Kai T (April 2007). "Unique germ-line organelle, nuage, functions to repress selfish genetic elements in Drosophila melanogaster". Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 104 (16): 6714–9. Bibcode:2007PNAS..104.6714L. doi:10.1073/pnas.0701920104. PMC 1871851. PMID 17428915.