Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Cornell University Weill Medical College, 1300 York Avenue, Box 60, New York, NY 10065, United States.
Curr Opin Neurobiol. 2013 Dec;23(6):928-34. doi: 10.1016/j.conb.2013.08.002. Epub 2013 Aug 23.
The proper function of the nervous system depends on precise production and connection of distinct neurons and glia. Cell fate determination of neurons and glia is tightly controlled by complex gene expression regulation in the developing and adult nervous system. Emerging evidence has demonstrated the importance of noncoding microRNAs (miRNAs) in neural development and function. This review highlights current discoveries of miRNA functions in specifying neuronal and glial cell fate. We summarize the roles of miRNAs in expansion and differentiation of neural stem cells, specification of neuronal subtypes and glial cells, reprogramming of functional neurons from embryonic stem cells and fibroblasts, and left-right asymmetric organization of neuronal subtypes. Investigating the network of interactions between miRNAs and target genes will reveal new gene regulation machinery involved in tuning the cell fate decisions of neurons and glia.
神经系统的正常功能取决于不同神经元和神经胶质细胞的精确生成和连接。神经元和神经胶质细胞的命运决定受发育和成人神经系统中复杂的基因表达调控的严格控制。新出现的证据表明非编码微小 RNA(miRNA)在神经发育和功能中的重要性。本综述强调了 miRNA 在特化神经元和神经胶质细胞命运中的功能的最新发现。我们总结了 miRNA 在神经干细胞的扩增和分化、神经元亚型和神经胶质细胞的特化、胚胎干细胞和成纤维细胞中功能性神经元的重编程以及神经元亚型的左右不对称组织中的作用。研究 miRNA 和靶基因之间的相互作用网络将揭示涉及调节神经元和神经胶质细胞命运决定的新的基因调控机制。