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Related Concept Videos

RNA Splicing01:32

RNA Splicing

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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...
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Alternative RNA Splicing02:18

Alternative RNA Splicing

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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...
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Alternative RNA Splicing02:18

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RNA Editing02:23

RNA Editing

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RNA editing is a post-transcriptional modification where a precursor mRNA (pre-mRNA) nucleotide sequence is changed by base insertion, deletion, or modification. The extent of RNA editing varies from a few hundred bases, in mitochondrial DNA of trypanosomes, to a just single base, in nuclear genes of mammals. Even a single base change in the pre-mRNA can convert a codon for one amino acid into the codon for another amino acid or a stop codon. This type of re-coding can significantly affect the...
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Nonsense-mediated mRNA Decay02:27

Nonsense-mediated mRNA Decay

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The Upf proteins that carry out nonsense-mediated decay (NMD) are found in all eukaryotic organisms, including humans. Each protein has an individual role, but they need to work in collaboration. Upf1 is an ATP-dependent RNA helicase that unwinds the RNA helix. Because Upf1 can unwind any RNA, Upf2 and Upf3 are required to help Upf1 discriminate between nonsense and normal mRNAs.
Usually, Upf3 binds to an Exon Junction Complex (EJC) at mRNA splice sites. If a ribosome fully translates the mRNA,...
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Updated: Oct 26, 2025

Use of Alu Element Containing Minigenes to Analyze Circular RNAs
13:10

Use of Alu Element Containing Minigenes to Analyze Circular RNAs

Published on: March 10, 2020

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Mammalian circular RNAs result largely from splicing errors.

Chuan Xu1, Jianzhi Zhang2

  • 1Bio-X Institutes, Key Laboratory for the Genetics of Developmental and Neuropsychiatric Disorders of Ministry of Education, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China; Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109, USA.

Cell Reports
|July 28, 2021
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Most circular RNAs (circRNAs) are likely non-functional byproducts of splicing errors, rather than beneficial molecules. Research suggests over 97% of circRNA production may be deleterious, with few functional candidates identified.

Keywords:
back-splicingcircRNAevolutionmolecular errornatural selection

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Identification of Circular RNAs using RNA Sequencing
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Identification of Circular RNAs using RNA Sequencing

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Discrimintion and Mapping of the Primary and Processed Transcripts in Maize Mitochondrion Using a Circular RT-PCR-based Strategy
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Discrimintion and Mapping of the Primary and Processed Transcripts in Maize Mitochondrion Using a Circular RT-PCR-based Strategy

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Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Oct 26, 2025

Use of Alu Element Containing Minigenes to Analyze Circular RNAs
13:10

Use of Alu Element Containing Minigenes to Analyze Circular RNAs

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Identification of Circular RNAs using RNA Sequencing
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Discrimintion and Mapping of the Primary and Processed Transcripts in Maize Mitochondrion Using a Circular RT-PCR-based Strategy
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Discrimintion and Mapping of the Primary and Processed Transcripts in Maize Mitochondrion Using a Circular RT-PCR-based Strategy

Published on: July 29, 2019

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Area of Science:

  • Molecular Biology
  • Genomics
  • Evolutionary Biology

Background:

  • Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are abundant in eukaryotes, formed via back-splicing.
  • Their biological functions remain largely uncharacterized, with uncertainty regarding their necessity.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the hypothesis that circRNA biogenesis is primarily a result of splicing errors.
  • To determine if circRNA production is largely deleterious or beneficial.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of RNA sequencing data from 11 tissues across humans, macaques, and mice.
  • Comparative analysis of back-splicing versus linear-splicing rates.
  • Examination of evolutionary conservation and correlation with population size.

Main Results:

  • Back-splicing is significantly less frequent than linear-splicing.
  • The rate of back-splicing decreases as splicing amount increases.
  • CircRNA prevalence correlates inversely with species' effective population size.
  • circRNAs exhibit low evolutionary conservation, with over 97% estimated as deleterious.

Conclusions:

  • The majority of circRNA production appears to be non-functional, stemming from splicing errors.
  • A small subset of circRNAs may possess functions, but the genome-wide trend supports a deleterious origin for most.
  • This challenges the notion of widespread functional roles for circRNAs.