Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA.
Nat Rev Genet. 2011 Feb;12(2):136-49. doi: 10.1038/nrg2904.
Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) are emerging as key regulators of embryogenesis. They control embryonic gene expression by several means, ranging from microRNA-induced degradation of mRNAs to long ncRNA-mediated modification of chromatin. Many aspects of embryogenesis seem to be controlled by ncRNAs, including the maternal-zygotic transition, the maintenance of pluripotency, the patterning of the body axes, the specification and differentiation of cell types and the morphogenesis of organs. Drawing from several animal model systems, we describe two emerging themes for ncRNA function: promoting developmental transitions and maintaining developmental states. These examples also highlight the roles of ncRNAs in ensuring a robust commitment to one of two possible cell fates.
非编码 RNA（ncRNAs）正在成为胚胎发生的关键调控因子。它们通过多种方式控制胚胎基因表达，范围从 microRNA 诱导的 mRNA 降解到长 ncRNA 介导的染色质修饰。胚胎发生的许多方面似乎都受到 ncRNAs 的控制，包括母-合子过渡、多能性的维持、体轴的模式形成、细胞类型的特化和分化以及器官的形态发生。从几个动物模型系统中，我们描述了 ncRNA 功能的两个新兴主题：促进发育转变和维持发育状态。这些例子还突出了 ncRNAs 在确保对两种可能的细胞命运之一做出坚定承诺方面的作用。
