Wellcome Trust/Cancer Research UK Gurdon Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 1QN, UK.
Differentiation. 2010 Mar;79(3):141-6. doi: 10.1016/j.diff.2009.11.002.
Germ cells are the only immortal cells in a mammalian organism. Here, I review recent progress in the research on the role of small non-coding RNAs - namely microRNAs (miRNAs), endogenous siRNAs (endo-siRNAs), and piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) - in the development of mammalian germ cells. Two key functions of small RNAs in germ cells are to globally regulate the germ cell developmental program and to keep selfish genetic elements under strict surveillance in order to maintain the germline immortality and to keep the species stable and eternal. I propose that many new members of small RNAs and even completely new types of small RNAs acting in the germline, especially in early primordial germ cells (PGCs) will be discovered in the near future.
生殖细胞是哺乳动物中唯一的永生细胞。在这里，我综述了近年来关于小非编码 RNA（即 microRNAs(miRNAs)、内源性 siRNAs(endo-siRNAs)和 piwi 相互作用 RNA(piRNAs)）在哺乳动物生殖细胞发育中的作用的研究进展。小 RNA 在生殖细胞中的两个关键功能是全局调控生殖细胞发育程序，并严格监控自私遗传元件，以维持生殖系的永生性，保持物种的稳定和永恒。我提出，在不久的将来，将会发现许多新的小 RNA 成员，甚至是全新类型的小 RNA，它们在生殖系中起作用，特别是在早期原始生殖细胞(PGCs)中。
