Control of mammalian gene expression by selective mRNA export

Key Points Nuclear export of mRNAs to the cytoplasm has been thought of as a 'one size fits all' default pathway. Two conserved complexes have key roles in the nuclear export of mRNA: transcription-export complexes TREX and TREX-2. Several recent examples indicate that specific biological pathways can be regulated by selective mRNA export, giving priority to some sets of mRNA over others. Nuclear export of functionally related sets of transcripts may be regulated by specific mRNA-binding export factors that recognize specific sequence elements among the mRNAs. mRNA export is a potentially important node in regulation of mammalian gene expression pathways. There is accumulating evidence that dysregulation of mRNA export may contribute to the development of human disease. Future research will provide key insights into how selective mRNA export pathways are regulated and how they are altered in disease.