title: Circular RNAs: analysis, expression and potential functions.
abstract: Just a few years ago, it had been assumed that the dominant RNA isoforms produced from eukaryotic genes were variants of messenger RNA, functioning as intermediates in gene expression. In early 2012, however, a surprising discovery was made: circular RNA (circRNA) was shown to be a transcriptional product in thousands of human and mouse genes and in hundreds of cases constituted the dominant RNA isoform. Subsequent studies revealed that the expression of circRNAs is developmentally regulated, tissue and cell-type specific, and shared across the eukaryotic tree of life. These features suggest important functions for these molecules. Here, we describe major advances in the field of circRNA biology, focusing on the regulation of and functional roles played by these molecules.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305, USA.
authors.forename: Steven P
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-7120-8365
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Barrett
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305, USA Stanford Cancer Institute, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305, USA Julia.salzman@stanford.edu.
authors.forename: Julia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Salzman
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D019295:Computational Biology; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D006801:Humans; D008957:Models, Genetic; D012313:RNA / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D012326:RNA Splicing / Q000235:genetics; D000079962:RNA, Circular
chemical_list: D000079962:RNA, Circular; D012313:RNA
keywords: CircRNA; Development; Non-coding RNA; Regulation; Splicing