| Description |
Alternative splicing is a common mechanism for generating multiple isoforms of proteins and splicing defects have been shown to result in disease conditions. Splicing increases genome complexity and ~40-60% of human genes are thought to be alternatively spliced and 10-15% in the case of elegans. It plays a very important role in regulating gene expression through developmental timing, tissue specificity, sex determination and coupling to Nonsense mediated mRNA decay (NMD). Here, we study alternative splicing in the nematode worm C. elegans, using a combination of experimental and computational approaches. Using high-throughput transcriptome sequencing coupled with exon tiling arrays and dual-colour reporters we identify and catalogue the extent of alternative splicing. In this talk, I will describe the approaches we have used towards identifying these isoform variations and will show specific examples of how these alternate splice forms are utilized by the organism
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