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Updated: May 30, 2026

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Identification of Alternative Splicing and Polyadenylation in RNA-seq Data
Published on: June 24, 2021
Transcriptome dynamics through alternative polyadenylation in developmental and environmental responses in plants
Yingjia Shen1, R C Venu, Kan Nobuta
1Department of Botany, Miami University, Oxford, OH 45056, USA
Genome Research
|August 5, 2011
Summary
Alternative polyadenylation (APA) significantly impacts gene expression and transcriptome diversity in plants. This study reveals widespread APA usage in Arabidopsis and rice, influencing gene regulation across development and environmental responses.
Area of Science:
- Molecular Biology
- Genomics
- Plant Science
Background:
- Alternative polyadenylation (APA) is a key post-transcriptional regulatory mechanism.
- APA influences mRNA sequence elements, coding capacity, gene expression, and transcriptome diversity.
- Understanding APA's role in transcriptome dynamics is crucial for plant biology.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the prevalence and dynamics of APA in plants.
- To analyze the contribution of APA to transcriptome diversity across various conditions.
- To identify conserved APA events between rice and Arabidopsis.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of large-scale RNA tag data from digital gene expression (DGE) protocols.
- Utilized massively parallel signature sequencing (MPSS-DGE) and Illumina sequencing-by-synthesis (SBS-DGE) platforms.
- Examined data from diverse tissues, developmental stages, and experimental treatments (mutations, environmental exposures).
Main Results:
- Approximately 60% of Arabidopsis genes and 47%-82% of rice genes exhibit APA.
- A significant proportion of APA events (49%-66%) occur upstream of annotated stop codons.
- APA transcripts constitute about 10% of the transcriptome and show differential distribution during development and stress responses.
- Conserved APA events were identified in 3034 genes between rice and Arabidopsis.
Conclusions:
- APA is a widespread and dynamic regulatory mechanism in plants, contributing significantly to transcriptome diversity.
- APA plays a role in developmental and environmental responses, offering an additional layer of gene regulation.
- Conserved APA events highlight fundamental roles in plant gene regulation across species.
Related Concept Videos
Transcription
Overview
Transcription is the process of synthesizing RNA from a DNA sequence by RNA polymerase. It is the first step in producing a protein from a gene sequence. Additionally, many other proteins and regulatory sequences are involved in the proper synthesis of messenger RNA (mRNA). Regulation of transcription is responsible for the differentiation of all the different types of cells and often for the proper cellular response to environmental signals.
Transcription Can Produce Different Kinds...
Transcription is the process of synthesizing RNA from a DNA sequence by RNA polymerase. It is the first step in producing a protein from a gene sequence. Additionally, many other proteins and regulatory sequences are involved in the proper synthesis of messenger RNA (mRNA). Regulation of transcription is responsible for the differentiation of all the different types of cells and often for the proper cellular response to environmental signals.
Transcription Can Produce Different Kinds...
Alternative RNA Splicing
Alternative RNA splicing is the regulated splicing of exons and introns to produce different mature mRNAs from a single pre-mRNA. Unlike in constitutive splicing where a single gene produces a single type of mRNA, alternative splicing allows an organism to produce multiple proteins from a single gene and plays an important role in protein diversity.
There are five types of alternative RNA splicing that vary in the ways the pre-mRNA segments are removed or retained in the mature mRNA. The first...
There are five types of alternative RNA splicing that vary in the ways the pre-mRNA segments are removed or retained in the mature mRNA. The first...
What is Gene Expression?
A gene is a stretch of DNA that serves as the blueprint for functional RNAs and proteins. Since DNA is comprised of nucleotides and proteins are comprised of amino acids, a mediator is required to convert the information encoded in DNA into proteins. This mediator is the messenger RNA (mRNA). mRNA copies the blueprint from DNA by a process called transcription. In eukaryotes, transcription occurs in the nucleus by complementary base-pairing with the DNA template. The mRNA is then processed and...
RNA-seq
RNA sequencing, or RNA-Seq, is a high-throughput sequencing technology used to study the transcriptome of a cell. Transcriptomics helps to interpret the functional elements of a genome and identify the molecular constituents of an organism. Additionally, it also helps in understanding the development of an organism and the occurrence of diseases.
Before the discovery of RNA-seq, microarray-based methods and Sanger sequencing were used for transcriptome analysis. However, while microarray-based...
Before the discovery of RNA-seq, microarray-based methods and Sanger sequencing were used for transcriptome analysis. However, while microarray-based...
mRNA Stability and Gene Expression
The structure and stability of mRNA molecules regulates gene expression, as mRNAs are a key step in the pathway from gene to protein. In eukaryotes, the half-life of mRNA varies from a few minutes up to several days. mRNA stability is essential in growth and development. The absence of the proteins regulating its stability, such as tristetraprolin in mice, can cause systemic issues, including bone marrow overgrowth, inflammation, and autoimmunity.
Cis-acting Elements involved in mRNA stability
Cis-acting Elements involved in mRNA stability
mRNA Stability and Gene Expression
The structure and stability of mRNA molecules regulates gene expression, as mRNAs are a key step in the pathway from gene to protein. In eukaryotes, the half-life of mRNA varies from a few minutes up to several days. mRNA stability is essential in growth and development. The absence of the proteins regulating its stability, such as tristetraprolin in mice, can cause systemic issues, including bone marrow overgrowth, inflammation, and autoimmunity.
Cis-acting Elements involved in mRNA stability
Cis-acting Elements involved in mRNA stability

