Eukaryote genomes encode a surprisingly large number of noncoding transcripts. Around two-thirds of human transcribed loci do not encode protein, and many are intergenic and produce long (>200 nucleotides) noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs). Extensive analyses using comparative genomics and transcriptomics approaches have established that lncRNA sequence and transcription tend to turn over rapidly during evolution. Our appreciation of the biological roles of lncRNAs, based only on a handful of transcripts with well-characterized functions, is that lncRNAs have diverse roles in regulating gene expression. These proposed roles together with their rapid rates of evolution suggest that lncRNAs could contribute to the divergent expression patterns observed among species and potentially to the origin of new traits.

中文翻译：

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基因间 lncRNA 和基因表达的进化。

真核生物基因组编码数量惊人的非编码转录本。大约三分之二的人类转录基因座不编码蛋白质，许多是基因间的并产生长（>200 个核苷酸）非编码 RNA (lncRNA)。使用比较基因组学和转录组学方法进行的广泛分析已经确定 lncRNA 序列和转录在进化过程中往往会迅速翻转。我们对 lncRNA 的生物学作用的评价，仅基于少数具有良好功能的转录本，是 lncRNA 在调节基因表达中具有多种作用。这些提议的角色及其快速的进化速度表明，lncRNA 可能有助于在物种间观察到不同的表达模式，并可能导致新性状的起源。