Global Approaches in Studying RNA-Binding Protein Interaction Networks

RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) play crucial roles in almost all aspects of cellular biology. RBP binding at specific target sites impacts expression of functionally coordinated sets of mRNAs and involves combinatorial and dynamic interactions with other RBPs. The complexity and principles of these regulatory networks are only beginning to be understood. In recent years, transcriptome-wide experimental and computational methods to study RBPs and their interactions with RNA provided new insights into their function. Here, we review the approaches used in examining RBPs and their networks and the concepts that have been developed. We emphasize studies focusing on RBP-RNA interactions and higher-order RBP coregulation and describe approaches that integrate multiple types of transcriptome-wide data to form a global picture of these regulatory pathways.