Molecular Surgeon Research Center, Michael E. DeBakey Department of Surgery, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
J Cell Mol Med. 2011 Jan;15(1):14-23. doi: 10.1111/j.1582-4934.2010.01219.x.
The discovery of microRNAs (miRNAs) represents one of the most significant advances in biological and medical sciences in the last decade. Hundreds of miRNAs have been identified in plants, viruses, animals and human beings, and these tiny, non-coding RNA transcripts have been found to play crucial roles in important biological processes involved in human health and disease. Recently, many studies have demonstrated that miR-196 plays critical roles in normal development and in the pathogenesis of human disease processes such as cancer. Several investigations have implemented cell culture and animal models to explore the potential molecular mechanisms of miR-196. This review provides updated information about the structure of the miR-196 gene and the roles of miR-196 in development, cancer and disease formation. Importantly, we discuss the possible molecular mechanisms whereby miR-196 regulates cellular functions including targeting molecules and gene regulation pathways; potential clinical applications are addressed, as well as future directions for investigation. miR-196a may prove to be a novel therapeutic target for several cancers.
微小 RNA（miRNAs）的发现是过去十年中生物和医学科学领域最重大的进展之一。已经在植物、病毒、动物和人类中鉴定出数百种 miRNA，这些微小的非编码 RNA 转录本被发现在涉及人类健康和疾病的重要生物学过程中发挥关键作用。最近，许多研究表明 miR-196 在正常发育和癌症等人类疾病过程的发病机制中起着关键作用。一些研究已经实施了细胞培养和动物模型来探索 miR-196 的潜在分子机制。本综述提供了关于 miR-196 基因结构及其在发育、癌症和疾病形成中的作用的最新信息。重要的是，我们讨论了 miR-196 调节细胞功能的可能分子机制，包括靶向分子和基因调控途径；讨论了潜在的临床应用以及未来的研究方向。miR-196a 可能被证明是几种癌症的新的治疗靶标。
