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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Oct 19, 2025

In Silico Identification and Characterization of circRNAs During Host-Pathogen Interactions

In Silico Identification and Characterization of circRNAs During Host-Pathogen Interactions

Published on: October 21, 2022

Evolutionary dynamics of circular RNAs in primates.

Gabriela Santos-Rodriguez^1,2, Irina Voineagu³, Robert J Weatheritt^1,2

¹EMBL Australia, Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Darlinghurst, Australia.

|September 20, 2021

Summary

Circular RNA (circRNA) expression profiles quickly diverge between primate species. However, some neural circRNAs are conserved over millions of years due to intron evolution.

Keywords:

RNA circRNA comparative genomics evolution evolutionary biology genetics genomics human non-coding RNAs rhesus macaque

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Last Updated: Oct 19, 2025

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Identification of Circular RNAs using RNA Sequencing

Identification of Circular RNAs using RNA Sequencing

Published on: November 14, 2019

Area of Science:

Evolutionary biology
Genomics
Molecular biology

Background:

Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are abundant in primate genes, but their evolutionary conservation is not well understood.
Understanding circRNA conservation provides insights into gene regulation and transcriptomic complexity.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the evolutionary conservation of circRNA expression profiles across primate species.
To identify mechanisms driving circRNA evolution and their impact on transcriptomic complexity.

Main Methods:

Comparative analysis of tissue-specific transcriptomes from primate species spanning over 70 million years.
Identification and characterization of conserved and species-specific circRNAs.
Analysis of intron evolution, particularly downstream intron lengthening, in conserved circRNAs.

Main Results:

circRNA expression profiles diverge rapidly within 3 million years, reflecting species identity more than organ type.
A subset of neural circRNAs exhibits remarkable conservation across tens of millions of years of primate evolution.
Conserved circRNAs are associated with significant lengthening of their downstream introns, driven by retrotransposon insertions.

Conclusions:

circRNA expression dynamics play a significant role in primate speciation and evolution.
Intron evolution, particularly retrotransposon activity, is a key mechanism shaping conserved circRNAs.
This study elucidates novel mechanisms contributing to transcriptomic complexity in primates through circRNA evolution.