Herpesvirus-encoded lncRNA targets host splicing by interacting with splicing factors

Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) encodes multiple short and long noncoding RNAs which contribute to viral latency, persistence, host gene regulation, and immune evasion. The Antisense-to-Latency Transcript (ALT) is a ~ 10 kb long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) located on the opposite strand of the major latency-associated region encoding the latency associated nuclear antigen, vCyclin, vFLIP, the Kaposin's and 12 microRNA genes. ALT is a nuclear lncRNA that is lowly expressed during latenc