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PMID: 21925379 Published · ppublish English Journal Article Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't Review

Molecular mechanisms of long noncoding RNAs.

Molecular cell ·Vol. 43 ·No. 6 ·2011-09-16 ·Pages 904-14

Wang KC, Chang HY

Abstract

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are an important class of pervasive genes involved in a variety of biological functions. Here we discuss the emerging archetypes of molecular functions that lncRNAs execute-as signals, decoys, guides, and scaffolds. For each archetype, examples from several disparate biological contexts illustrate the commonality of the molecular mechanisms, and these mechanistic views provide useful explanations and predictions of biological outcomes. These archetypes of lncRNA function may be a useful framework to consider how lncRNAs acquire properties as biological signal transducers and hint at their possible origins in evolution. As new lncRNAs are being discovered at a rapid pace, the molecular mechanisms of lncRNAs are likely to be enriched and diversified.

MeSH Terms
Animals Chromatin/metabolism Humans Models, Genetic Pseudogenes/physiology RNA Polymerase II/physiology RNA Stability RNA, Untranslated/chemistry,metabolism,physiology Telomerase/metabolism Telomere/chemistry,genetics Transcription, Genetic
Chemicals
Chromatin RNA, Untranslated RNA Polymerase II Telomerase
Authors & Affiliations
2 authors, click to expand affiliations / ORCID
Wang Kevin C
Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Program in Epithelial Biology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305, USA.
Chang Howard Y
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Article Info
Journal
Molecular cell
Abbr.
Mol Cell
ISSN
1097-4164
DOI
10.1016/j.molcel.2011.08.018
Published
2011-09-16
Pages
904-14
Language
English
Region
United States
NLM ID
9802571
PMCID
PMC3199020
Subset
IM
Grants
NHGRI NIH HHS · R01 HG004361 · United States
NHGRI NIH HHS · R01 HG004361-03 · United States
Howard Hughes Medical Institute · United States
External Links
PubMed source DOI: 10.1016/j.molcel.2011.08.018 PMC Full Text View journal details
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