Transcriptome Informatics

Abstract

Ribonucleic acid (RNA) represents the central player in the central dogma of molecular biology which states DNA is transcribed to RNA and RNA is translated into protein. However, recent studies have shown that RNA has a large and ever expanding role in cells. RNA can provide a physical scaffold for protein complexes, catalyze chemical reactions itself, regulate the process of DNA replication, regulate RNA transcription, and regulate protein translation. To achieve all of its multifaceted functions, RNA is divided in many classes based on size, structure, chemical modification, and sequence. The entire set of RNAs present in a cell constitute the RNA transcriptome. Because the RNA transcriptome is very large, constituting >20,000 genes from hundreds of thousands of transcripts in human cells, analysis requires specific tools, methods, and technological platforms to gather, process, calculate, evaluate and inform upon these unique and important molecules. This article seeks to introduce the reader to important fundamental terms and concepts needed to understand RNA informatics.