Gori Manuele, Trombetta Marcella, Santini Daniele, Rainer Alberto
a 1 Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Tissue Engineering Lab , Rome, Italy
b 2 Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Division of Medical Oncology , Rome, Italy.
Expert Opin Biol Ther. 2015;15(11):1601-22. doi: 10.1517/14712598.2015.1071349. Epub 2015 Jul 22.
Tissue engineering is a growing area of biomedical research, holding great promise for a broad range of potential applications in the field of regenerative medicine. In recent decades, multiple tissue engineering strategies have been adopted to mimic and improve specific biological functions of tissues and organs, including biomimetic materials, drug-releasing scaffolds, stem cells, and dynamic culture systems. MicroRNAs (miRNAs), noncoding small RNAs that negatively regulate the expression of downstream target mRNAs, are considered a novel class of molecular targets and therapeutics that may play an important role in tissue engineering.
Herein, we highlight the latest achievements in regenerative medicine, focusing on the role of miRNAs as key modulators of gene expression, stem cell self-renewal, proliferation and differentiation, and eventually in driving cell fate decisions. Finally, we will discuss the contribution of miRNAs in regulating the rearrangement of the tissue microenvironment and angiogenesis, and the range of strategies for miRNA delivery into target cells and tissues.
Manipulation of miRNAs is an alternative approach and an attractive strategy for controlling several aspects of tissue engineering, although some issues concerning their in vivo effects and optimal delivery methods still remain uncovered.
组织工程是生物医学研究中一个不断发展的领域，在再生医学领域有着广泛的潜在应用前景。近几十年来，人们采用了多种组织工程策略来模拟和改善组织器官的特定生物学功能，包括仿生材料、药物释放支架、干细胞和动态培养系统。微小RNA（miRNA）是一类非编码小RNA，可负向调节下游靶mRNA的表达，被认为是一类新型分子靶点和治疗药物，可能在组织工程中发挥重要作用。
在此，我们重点介绍再生医学的最新成果，着重探讨miRNA作为基因表达、干细胞自我更新、增殖和分化的关键调节因子，以及最终在驱动细胞命运决定方面所起的作用。最后，我们将讨论miRNA在调节组织微环境重排和血管生成中的作用，以及将miRNA递送至靶细胞和组织的一系列策略。
尽管有关miRNA体内效应和最佳递送方法的一些问题仍未解决，但对miRNA的操控是控制组织工程多个方面的一种替代方法和有吸引力的策略。
