Small open reading frames in plant research: from prediction to functional characterization.

Gene prediction is a laborious and time-consuming task. The advancement of sequencing technologies and bioinformatics tools, coupled with accelerated rate of ribosome profiling and mass spectrometry development, have made identification of small open reading frames (sORFs) (< 100 codons) in various plant genomes possible. The past 50 years have seen sORFs being isolated from many organisms. However, to date, a comprehensive sORF annotation pipeline is as yet unavailable, hence, addressed in our review. Here, we also provide current information on classification and functions of plant sORFs and their potential applications in crop improvement programs.