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Updated: Jan 15, 2026

De novo Identification of Actively Translated Open Reading Frames with Ribosome Profiling Data
Published on: February 18, 2022
A comprehensive review of ribosomal RNA-derived fragments (rRFs): Emerging insights and future directions
Y S Ravi Kumar1, A R Bhavana1, Areeba Aziz2
1Department of Biotechnology, M. S. Ramaiah, Institute of Technology, MSR Nagar, Bengaluru, India.
Abstract:
RNA is broadly classified into two categories, coding and non-coding RNA. Ribosomal RNA fragments (rRFs) are derived from ribosomal RNA (rRNA), a class of non-coding RNA that constitutes approximately 80 % of total cytoplasmic RNA. The 28S, 18S, 5.8S and 5S rRNA generate rRFs of specific length (16-26 nt), which function in a species-specific manner across various kingdoms of life. These fragments are believed to participate in diverse biological processes, including immune evasion, host-pathogen interactions, and cell-cell communication. Apart from this, rRNA fragments also play significant roles in regulating translation, extending beyond their traditional function as structural and catalytic components of ribosomes. These fragments are increasingly recognized as active participants in various regulatory mechanisms. This review comprehensively summarizes the role of ribosomal RNA fragments in context of viruses, bacteria, protozoa, fungi, plants, insects and animals and lastly concludes by outlining the bioinformatics pipeline used for rRFs detection, highlighting current knowledge gaps, and suggesting future directions.
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