Large regions of our DNA are non-coding, meaning that these areas do not code for proteins. Yet many of these non-coding regions are actually transcribed, creating long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) molecules. Thousands of lncRNAs have been identified in humans, and indeed in many other organisms also, with some lncRNAs involved in human diseases such as cancer. However, identifying lncRNAs and understanding their function is a difficult challenge. Caenorhabditis elegans is a nematode worm used as a model organism for uncovering the molecular function of genes. It was the first multi-cellular organism to have its complete genome sequenced 20 years ago.
A team of researchers led by Dr Alper Akay from Professor Eric Miska's group at the Wellcome/Cancer Research UK Gurdon Institute in Cambridge, and Dr Wilfried Haerty from the Earlham Institute in Norwich, set-out to identify the long non-coding RNAs of C. elegans. Their study identifies hundreds of new lncRNAs. Deleting several of these lncRNAs makes the animals grow smaller and have less offspring. Elucidating how these lncRNAs function in regulating important developmental processes would help our understanding and the study of human lncRNAs involved in cancer and in other diseases.
