Intronless Genes

Detlef Doenecke, Georg‐August‐Universität Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
Werner Albig, Georg‐August‐Universität Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany

Published online: September 2005

DOI: 10.1038/npg.els.0005022

Most eukaryotic protein-coding genes are composed of exon and intron sequences. Intron derived sequences within primary transcripts are eliminated by ribonucleic acid (RNA) splicing. A small number of protein-coding genes are intronless; their primary transcripts are processed at their 5¢ and 3¢ ends like other premessenger RNAs, but no splicing is needed. Examples of intronless genes are genes for histone and interferon.

Keywords: introns; intronless genes; retroposons; histones; histone genes

 References
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    De Maeyer E and De Maeyer-Guignard J (1998) Type I interferons. International Review of Immunology 17: 53–73.
    Doenecke D, Albig W, Bouterfa H and Drabent B (1994) Organization and expression of H1 histone and H1 replacement histone genes. Journal of Cellular Biochemistry 54: 423–431.
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 Web Links
    ePath H1 histone family, member 0 (H1F0); Locus ID: 3005. LocusLink: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/LocusLink/LocRpt.cgi?l=3005
    ePath H1 histone family, member T (testis-specific) (H1FT); Locus ID: 3010. LocusLink: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/LocusLink/LocRpt.cgi?l=3010
    ePath H2A histone family, member Y (H2AFY); Locus ID: 9555. LocusLink: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/LocusLink/LocRpt.cgi?l=9555
    ePath H3 histone, family 3A (H3F3A); Locus ID: 3020. LocusLink: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/LocusLink/LocRpt.cgi?l=3020
    ePath H1 histone family, member 0 (H1F0); MIM number: 142708. OMIM: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/htbin-post/Omim/dispmim?142708
    ePath H1 histone family, member T (testis-specific) (H1FT); MIM number: 142712. OMIM: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/htbin-post/Omim/dispmim?142712
    ePath H3 histone, family 3A (H3F3A); MIM number: 601128. OMIM: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/htbin-post/Omim/dispmim?601128

Related Sub-Topics:

Nucleic Acid Structure | Gene and Genome Structure and Organisation | Chromosomes and Chromatin Modifications | DNA Structure and Function | Evolution of Coding and Functional Modules
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Article Title: Intronless Genes
 
How to Cite close
Doenecke, Detlef, and Albig, Werner(Sep 2005) Intronless Genes. In: eLS. John Wiley & Sons Ltd, Chichester. http://www.els.net [doi: 10.1038/npg.els.0005022]