Regulated microexon alternative splicing in single neurons tunes synaptic function.

ABSTRACT: Microexons are important components of the neuronal transcriptome. Though tiny, their splicing is essential for neuronal development and function. Microexons are typically included in the nervous system and skipped in other tissues, but less is known about whether they are alternatively spliced across neuron types, and if so what the regulatory mechanisms and functional consequences might be. We set out to globally address this question in C. elegans using deep single-cell transcriptomes and in vivo splicing reporters. We find widespread alternative microexon splicing across neuron types. Focusing on a broadly-conserved 9-nucleotide exon in the synaptic vesicle gene unc-13, we find that it is completely skipped in olfactory neurons, but completely included in motor neurons. This splicing p

SUBMITTER: Choudhary B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12287369 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature