AUTHOR=Delihas Nicholas 

TITLE=Birth of a Regulatory Long Non-coding RNA/Gene, linc-UR-UB

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Genetics

VOLUME=12

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/genetics/articles/10.3389/fgene.2021.661425

DOI=10.3389/fgene.2021.661425

ISSN=1664-8021

ABSTRACT=<p>The origin of genes has been a major topic of research for many years, albeit in some cases, it has been a difficult process to elucidate. Insightful is a recent publication that experimentally shows how one gene, <italic>linc-UR-UB</italic> was born. This gene is regulated in a complex manner in male germ cells during spermatogenesis and is believed to participate in the regulation of levels of the ubiquitin specific peptidase 18 (<italic>USP18</italic>) mRNA. The process of formation of <italic>linc-UR-UB</italic> appears relatively simple. It involves a transcription read through from an upstream gene to a downstream functional element, the USP18 3' UTR sequence. This small element also shares the same sequence as the 3' ends of the lincRNA <italic>FAM247</italic> family genes. In addition to <italic>linc-UR-UB</italic>, it is possible that other genes formed in a similar fashion that involves a genomic sequence read through to a functional element.</p>