A guide to naming human non-coding RNA genes

Ruth L Seal; Ling-Ling Chen; Sam Griffiths-Jones; Todd M Lowe; Michael B Mathews; Dawn O'Reilly; Andrew J Pierce; Peter F Stadler; Igor Ulitsky; Sandra L Wolin; Elspeth A Bruford

doi:10.15252/embj.2019103777

A guide to naming human non-coding RNA genes

EMBO J. 2020 Mar 16;39(6):e103777. doi: 10.15252/embj.2019103777. Epub 2020 Feb 24.

Authors

Ruth L Seal^{1

2}, Ling-Ling Chen³, Sam Griffiths-Jones⁴, Todd M Lowe⁵, Michael B Mathews⁶, Dawn O'Reilly⁷, Andrew J Pierce⁸, Peter F Stadler^{9

10

11

12

13}, Igor Ulitsky¹⁴, Sandra L Wolin¹⁵, Elspeth A Bruford^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Haematology, University of Cambridge School of Clinical Medicine, Cambridge, UK.
² European Molecular Biology Laboratory, European Bioinformatics Institute, Hinxton, UK.
³ State Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Chinese Academy of Science, Shanghai, China.
⁴ School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
⁵ Department of Biomolecular Engineering, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA, USA.
⁶ Department of Medicine, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ, USA.
⁷ Computational Biology and Integrative Genomics Lab, MRC/CRUK Oxford Institute and Department of Oncology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
⁸ Translational Medicine, Oncology R&D, AstraZeneca, Cambridge, UK.
⁹ Bioinformatics Group, Department of Computer Science, Interdisciplinary Center for Bioinformatics, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.
¹⁰ Max Planck Institute for Mathematics in the Sciences, Leipzig, Germany.
¹¹ Institute of Theoretical Chemistry, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
¹² Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad National de Colombia, Sede Bogotá, Colombia.
¹³ Santa Fe Institute, Santa Fe, USA.
¹⁴ Department of Biological Regulation, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel.
¹⁵ RNA Biology Laboratory, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Frederick, MD, USA.

Abstract

Research on non-coding RNA (ncRNA) is a rapidly expanding field. Providing an official gene symbol and name to ncRNA genes brings order to otherwise potential chaos as it allows unambiguous communication about each gene. The HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC, www.genenames.org) is the only group with the authority to approve symbols for human genes. The HGNC works with specialist advisors for different classes of ncRNA to ensure that ncRNA nomenclature is accurate and informative, where possible. Here, we review each major class of ncRNA that is currently annotated in the human genome and describe how each class is assigned a standardised nomenclature.

Keywords: gene nomenclature; gene symbols; non-coding RNA.

Publication types

Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Review

MeSH terms

Genome, Human / genetics*
Humans
RNA, Untranslated / classification*
RNA, Untranslated / genetics
Terminology as Topic*

Substances

RNA, Untranslated

Abstract

Publication types

MeSH terms

Substances

Grants and funding