No way out: when RNA elements promote nuclear retention

Abstract

The proper localization of RNA transcripts is a highly controlled and fine‐tuned process. Indeed, regulation of RNA trafficking is mediated by both cis‐acting elements and trans‐acting factors, and defects in either mechanism have been associated with disease. Identifying the RNA sequence motifs that determine cellular localization for a given transcript therefore represents an important and challenging task. A new study from Shukla et al in The EMBO Journal—along with related work from Lubelsky and Ulitsky published elsewhere—describes a new screen that uses hybrid RNAs with barcoded oligonucleotides to identify cis‐acting elements that increase the propensity of RNAs to be retained in the nuclear compartment.