Abstract

Discovered over 40 years ago, alternative splicing (AS) formed a large part of the puzzle explaining how proteomic complexity can be achieved with a limited set of genes. The majority of eukaryote genes have multiple transcriptional isoforms, and recent data indicate that each transcript of protein-coding genes contain 11 exons and produce 5.4 mRNAs on average. In humans, approximately 95% of multi-exon genes show evidence of AS and approximately 60% of genes have at least one alternative transcription start site, some of which exert antagonistic functions,. Its regulation is essential for providing cells and tissues their specific features, and for their response to environmental changes,.

About This Material

This is a Hands-on Tutorial from the GTN which is usable either for individual self-study, or as a teaching material in a classroom.

Questions this will address

• Are there statistically significant differences in gene splicing patterns between samples?
• Are there significant isoform switching events between the experimental conditions?

Learning Objectives

• Perform genome-wide isoform analysis in order to evaluate differences in expression profiles between two conditions
• Evaluate the differential alternative splicing in specific genes