Retroposition as a source of antisense long non-coding RNAs with possible regulatory functions

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are a class of intensely studied, yet enigmatic molecules that make up a substantial portion of the human transcriptome. In this work, we link the origins and functions of some lncRNAs to retroposition, a process resulting in the creation of intronless copies (retrocopies) of the so-called parental genes. We found 35 human retrocopies transcribed in antisense and giving rise to 58 lncRNA transcripts. These lncRNAs share sequence similarity with the corresponding parental genes but in the sense/antisense orientation, meaning they have the potential to interact with each other and to form RNA:RNA duplexes. We took a closer look at these duplexes and found that 10 of the lncRNAs might regulate parental gene expression and processing at the pre-mRNA and mRNA levels. Further analysis of the co-expression and expression correlation provided support for the existence of functional coupling between lncRNAs and their mate parental gene transcripts.