A long non-coding RNA promotes full activation of adult gene expression in the chicken α-globin domain

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) were recently shown to regulate chromatin remodelling activities.their function in regulating gene expression switching during specific developmental stages is poorly understood. Here we describe a nuclear, non-coding transcript responsive for the stage-specific activation of the chicken adult αD globin gene.this noncoding transcript, named α-globin transcript long non-coding RNA (lncRNA-αGT) is transcriptionally upregulated in late stages of chicken development, when active chromatin marks the adult αD gene promoter. Accordingly, the lncRNA-αGT promoter drives erythroid-specific transcription. Furthermore, loss of function experiments showed that lncRNA-αGT is required for full activation of the αD adult gene and maintenance of transcriptionally active chromatin.these findings uncovered lncRNA-αGT as an important part of the switching from embryonic to adult α-globin gene expression, and suggest a function of lncRNA-αGT in contributing to the maintenance of adult α-globin gene expression by promoting an active chromatin structure. © 2014 Landes Bioscience.