The family of long non-coding RNAs includes a variety of different kinds of RNA, including, but not limited to, circular RNA (circRNA), nuclear lncRNA, long intergenic non-coding RNA, and enhancer RNA. The development of next-generation sequencing has made the study of lncRNA more accessible (because lncRNA is not very common in the cell relative to other types of RNA).
Editing and modifications to lncRNA have demonstrated to result in changes in RNA expression and rate of mutation. 5-methylcytosine (mC), N-methyladenosine (mA), and pseudouridine are the three most common and most studied modifications occurring in lncRNA. Modifications to the nucleotide structure are likely to impact the structure of lncRNAs and modulate their overall function. The study of the reversibility of these modifications is an active area of research. These modifications impact a variety of different qualities including the lncRNA's function and the initiation of translation. Modifications to lncRNAs have been demonstrated to impact where they localize within the cell and while complicated structures, such as the crucifix of tRNA, are not typically found in lncRNA, modifications may alter their structure and impact the overall function and pathway the lncRNA takes.