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Related Concept Videos

RNA Splicing01:32

RNA Splicing

Splicing is the process by which eukaryotic RNA is edited before its translation into protein. The RNA strand transcribed from eukaryotic DNA is called the primary transcript. The primary transcripts that become mRNAs are called precursor messenger RNAs (pre-mRNAs). Eukaryotic pre-mRNA contains alternating sequences of exons and introns. Exons are nucleotide sequences that code for proteins, whereas introns are the non-coding regions. In RNA splicing, introns are removed and exons are bonded...
RNA Splicing01:32

RNA Splicing

Splicing is the process by which eukaryotic RNA is edited before its translation into protein. The RNA strand transcribed from eukaryotic DNA is called the primary transcript. The primary transcripts that become mRNAs are called precursor messenger RNAs (pre-mRNAs). Eukaryotic pre-mRNA contains alternating sequences of exons and introns. Exons are nucleotide sequences that code for proteins, whereas introns are the non-coding regions. In RNA splicing, introns are removed and exons are bonded...
Organization of Genes02:07

Organization of Genes

Overview
Alternative RNA Splicing02:18

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...
Alternative RNA Splicing02:18

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...
Pre-mRNA Processing: Modification of pre-mRNA Ends01:35

Pre-mRNA Processing: Modification of pre-mRNA Ends

In eukaryotic cells, transcripts made by RNA polymerase are modified and processed before exiting the nucleus. Unprocessed RNA is called precursor mRNA or pre-mRNA to distinguish it from mature mRNA.
Once about 20-40 ribonucleotides have been joined together by RNA polymerase, a group of enzymes adds a cap to the 5' end of the growing transcript. In this process, a 5' phosphate is replaced by modified guanosine that has a methyl group attached (7-methyl guanosine). This 5' cap helps the cell...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 23, 2026

A Reporter Assay to Analyze Intronic microRNA Maturation in Mammalian Cells
06:48

A Reporter Assay to Analyze Intronic microRNA Maturation in Mammalian Cells

Published on: June 16, 2022

The function of introns.

Michal Chorev1, Liran Carmel

  • 1Department of Genetics, The Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, Faculty of Science, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem Jerusalem, Israel.

Frontiers in Genetics
|April 21, 2012
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Introns, once thought functionless, play crucial roles in eukaryotic mRNA processing. Their diverse functions suggest they evolved from selfish genetic elements into essential regulatory components.

Keywords:
exon-junction complexexpression regulationgene architectureintron functionintron positional conservationintron–exon structurenon-coding RNAssplicing

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Last Updated: May 23, 2026

A Reporter Assay to Analyze Intronic microRNA Maturation in Mammalian Cells
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Area of Science:

  • Genomics
  • Molecular Biology
  • Evolutionary Biology

Background:

  • Eukaryotic gene structure features introns and exons, prompting questions about the functional significance of introns.
  • The evolutionary origin and role of introns in eukaryotic genomes remain a subject of debate.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the diverse functions of introns in contemporary species.
  • To explore the evolutionary trajectory of introns from potential selfish elements to functional components.
  • To propose a new method for identifying functional introns.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of studies on intron function and evolution.
  • Analysis of the spectrum of functions attributed to introns in mRNA processing.
  • Introduction of the concept of 'intron positional conservation' as an identification criterion.

Main Results:

  • Introns are involved in nearly all stages of messenger RNA (mRNA) processing.
  • The wide array of intronic functions supports their independent evolution in various eukaryotic lineages.
  • Intron positional conservation is proposed as a novel criterion for identifying functional introns.

Conclusions:

  • Introns are not merely remnants but possess significant functional roles in eukaryotes.
  • The evolution of introns likely involved a transition from selfish genetic elements to essential regulatory elements.
  • Positional conservation offers a new perspective for understanding intron function and evolution.