Messenger RNA Metabolism

Metabolism of messenger RNA (mRNA) is critical for control of cell phenotype and includes several steps: transcription of DNA into a pre-mRNA, mRNA maturation, nucleocytoplasmic export and transport to specific cellular locations, translation into proteins, and decay. All these steps are seamlessly integrated and controlled by a large number of RNA-binding proteins that interact with RNA, forming messenger ribonucleoprotein particles. Several noncoding RNAs, such as microRNAs, also regulate mRNA metabolism. Activity-dependent control of mRNA transcription, splicing, and translation are critical for growth, plasticity, and repair in the nervous system. Disorders of RNA metabolism are a major disease pathway for a large number of neurologic disorders, many of them associated with accumulation of stress granules containing RNA and associated proteins. Elucidation of the pathophysiology of some of these disorders provides novel approaches for their treatment, including antisense oligonucleotide therapy.