Lam Michael T Y, Li Wenbo, Rosenfeld Michael G, Glass Christopher K
Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA, USA.
Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA, USA.
Trends Biochem Sci. 2014 Apr;39(4):170-82. doi: 10.1016/j.tibs.2014.02.007. Epub 2014 Mar 24.
A large portion of the human genome is transcribed into RNAs without known protein-coding functions, far outnumbering coding transcription units. Extensive studies of long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have clearly demonstrated that they can play critical roles in regulating gene expression, development, and diseases, acting both as transcriptional activators and repressors. More recently, enhancers have been found to be broadly transcribed, resulting in the production of enhancer-derived RNAs, or eRNAs. Here, we review emerging evidence suggesting that at least some eRNAs contribute to enhancer function. We discuss these findings with respect to potential mechanisms of action of eRNAs and other ncRNAs in regulated gene expression.
人类基因组的很大一部分被转录为没有已知蛋白质编码功能的RNA，其数量远远超过编码转录单元。对长链非编码RNA（lncRNA）的广泛研究清楚地表明，它们在调节基因表达、发育和疾病中可以发挥关键作用，既可以作为转录激活因子，也可以作为转录抑制因子。最近，人们发现增强子被广泛转录，从而产生增强子衍生RNA，即eRNA。在这里，我们综述了新出现的证据，表明至少一些eRNA有助于增强子功能。我们结合eRNA和其他非编码RNA在调控基因表达中的潜在作用机制来讨论这些发现。
