This study describes comprehensive polling of transcription start and termination sites and analysis of previously unidentified full-length complementary DNAs derived from the mouse genome. We identify the 5' and 3' boundaries of 181,047 transcripts with extensive variation in transcripts arising from alternative promoter usage, splicing, and polyadenylation. There are 16,247 new mouse protein-coding transcripts, including 5154 encoding previously unidentified proteins. Genomic mapping of the transcriptome reveals transcriptional forests, with overlapping transcription on both strands, separated by deserts in which few transcripts are observed. The data provide a comprehensive platform for the comparative analysis of mammalian transcriptional regulation in differentiation and development.

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Gene expression is finely regulated at the post-transcriptional level. Features of the untranslated regions of mRNAs that control their translation, degradation and localization include stem-loop structures, upstream initiation codons and open reading frames, internal ribosome entry sites and various cis-acting elements that are bound by RNA-binding proteins.

The 5′ and 3′ untranslated regions of eukaryotic mRNAs (UTRs) play crucial roles in the post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression through the modulation of nucleo-cytoplasmic mRNA transport, translation efficiency, subcellular localization and message stability. UTRdb is a curated database of 5′ and 3′ untranslated sequences of eukaryotic mRNAs, derived from several sources of primary data. Experimentally validated functional motifs are annotated and also collated as the UTRsite database where more specific information on the functional motifs and cross-links to interacting regulatory protein are provided. In the current update, the UTR entries have been organized in a gene-centric structure to better visualize and retrieve 5′ and 3′UTR variants generated by alternative initiation and termination of transcription and alternative splicing. Experimentally validated miRNA targets and conserved sequence elements are also annotated. The integration of UTRdb with genomic data has allowed the implementation of an efficient annotation system and a powerful retrieval resource for the selection and extraction of specific UTR subsets. All internet resources implemented for retrieval and functional analysis of 5′ and 3′ untranslated regions of eukaryotic mRNAs are accessible at http://utrdb.ba.itb.cnr.it/.

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