Cryptic unstable transcripts (CUTs) are rapidly degraded by the nuclear exosome. 
However, the mechanism by which they are recognized and targeted to the exosome 
is not fully understood. Here we report that the MTREC complex, which has 
recently been shown to promote degradation of meiotic mRNAs and regulatory 
ncRNAs, is also the major nuclear exosome targeting complex for CUTs and 
unspliced pre-mRNAs in Schizosaccharomyces pombe. The MTREC complex specifically 
binds to CUTs, meiotic mRNAs and unspliced pre-mRNA transcripts and targets 
these RNAs for degradation by the nuclear exosome, while the TRAMP complex has 
only a minor role in this process. The MTREC complex physically interacts with 
the nuclear exosome and with various RNA-binding and RNA-processing complexes, 
coupling RNA processing to the RNA degradation machinery. Our study reveals the 
central role of the evolutionarily conserved MTREC complex in RNA quality 
control, and in the recognition and elimination of CUTs.