Frankenstein protein assembled by mRNA trans-splicing promotes cytokine release.

In inflammatory-polarized macrophages, mRNA trans-splicing generates chimeric RNAs that assemble a Frankenstein protein and promote cytokine release.

• Why it matters: It addresses whether trans-splicing events occur in mammals and whether they yield functional proteins that affect immune inflammation.
• What they did: The work analyzed inflammatory-state macrophages and identified chimeric RNAs produced by trans-splicing, linking these RNA products to protein assembly and inflammatory signaling.
• The result: The findings suggest that mRNA trans-splicing in mammalian macrophages can produce functional chimeric proteins that enhance cytokine release.

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