Figure 1.

Schematic depicting possible regulation of cellular RNA species by ADARs and RNA editing, as supported by recent large-scale NGS studies. Duplex structures that form on transcribed RNA molecules as a result of inverted sequence repeats (e.g. Alu or LINE elements) are potentially susceptible to ADARs binding and/or editing. Depending on the region where these structural substrates reside, RNA editing may lead to different fates of the mRNA and miRNA transcripts, as shown in this figure. Recent studies utilizing deep sequencing technologies have provided further insights into these regulatory pathways. For particular steps, such as transcription and translation, roles of RNA editing have not been clarified thus far. See text for further description.