Biogenesis and Functions of Circular RNAs Come into Focus

Overview

Journal Trends Cell Biol

Specialty Cell Biology

Date 2020 Jan 25

PMID 31973951

Citations 160

Authors

Mei-Sheng Xiao

Yuxi Ai

Jeremy E Wilusz

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Many eukaryotic protein-coding genes are able to generate exonic circular RNAs. Most of these covalently linked transcripts are expressed at low levels, but some accumulate to higher levels than their associated linear mRNAs. We highlight several methodologies that have been developed in recent years to identify and characterize these transcripts, and which have revealed an increasingly detailed view of how circular RNAs can be generated and function. It is now clear that modulation of circular RNA levels can result in a variety of molecular and physiological phenotypes, including effects on the nervous system, innate immunity, microRNAs, and many disease-relevant pathways.

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