Center for RNA Molecular Biology, Department of Genetics and Genome Sciences, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, OH 44106, USA.
Nucleic Acids Res. 2012 Aug;40(14):6391-400. doi: 10.1093/nar/gks296. Epub 2012 Apr 5.
The recent discovery that the human and other mammalian genomes produce thousands of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) raises many fascinating questions. These mRNA-like molecules, which lack significant protein-coding capacity, have been implicated in a wide range of biological functions through diverse and as yet poorly understood molecular mechanisms. Despite some recent insights into how lncRNAs function in such diverse cellular processes as regulation of gene expression and assembly of cellular structures, by and large, the key questions regarding lncRNA mechanisms remain to be answered. In this review, we discuss recent advances in understanding the biology of lncRNAs and propose avenues of investigation that may lead to fundamental new insights into their functions and mechanisms of action. Finally, as numerous lncRNAs are dysregulated in human diseases and disorders, we also discuss potential roles for these molecules in human health.
最近的发现表明，人类和其他哺乳动物的基因组会产生数千种长非编码 RNA（lncRNA），这引发了许多引人入胜的问题。这些类似于 mRNA 的分子缺乏显著的蛋白质编码能力，通过多种多样且尚未被充分了解的分子机制，与广泛的生物学功能相关联。尽管最近在 lncRNA 如何在基因表达调控和细胞结构组装等多种细胞过程中发挥作用方面有了一些新的认识，但总的来说，lncRNA 机制的关键问题仍有待解答。在这篇综述中，我们讨论了理解 lncRNA 生物学的最新进展，并提出了可能的研究途径，这可能会对它们的功能和作用机制有根本性的新认识。最后，由于许多 lncRNA 在人类疾病和障碍中失调，我们还讨论了这些分子在人类健康中的潜在作用。
