The rich non-coding RNA landscape of the Drosophila antenna. Talross and Carlson

Emerging evidence suggests that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) play diverse and critical roles in neural development, function, and disease. Investigation of the roles of lncRNA in the nervous system is a vast and challenging frontier. Here, we examine neuronal lncRNAs in a model system that offers enormous advantages for deciphering their functions: the Drosophila olfactory system. This system is numerically simple, its neurons are exquisitely well-defined, and it drives multiple complex behaviors. We have undertaken the first comprehensive survey of linear and circular lncRNAs in the Drosophila antenna, and have identified a wealth of lncRNAs enriched in it. We have generated an unprecedented lncRNA-to-neuron map, which reveals that olfactory receptor neurons are defined not only by their receptors but also by the combination of lncRNAs they express. We identify species-specific lncRNAs, including many that are expressed primarily in pheromone-sensing neurons and that may act in modulation of pheromonal responses or in speciation. This resource opens many new opportunities for investigating the roles of lncRNAs in the nervous system.