Sanjay Sukumaran, Girish Chandrashekaran
Department of Pharmacology, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER), Puducherry, India.
Eur J Clin Pharmacol. 2017 Apr;73(4):399-407. doi: 10.1007/s00228-016-2183-1. Epub 2016 Dec 27.
MicroRNAs (miRNA or miR) are the most abundant and stable class of small RNA. Unlike the typical RNA molecules present in the cell, they do not encode proteins but can control translation. and Hhence, they are found to play a major role in the regulation of cellular processes. miRNAs have been shown to differentially regulate various genes, and the expression levels of some miRNAs changes several fold in liver and serum, during drug- induced toxicity. This review summarises some of the latest findings about the biological functions of miRNA and its potential use as diagnostic biomarkers in drug- induced liver injury.
The information presented in this article is taken from published literature, both original work and reviews on mechanisms of drug- induced liver injury, miRNA in liver pathophysiology, and studies exploring the use of miRNA as biomarker in drug- induced liver injury. Literature search was done using search engines:- PUBMED, Google scholar, and relevant journal sites.
Recent research provides insight into the ability of miRNA to regulate various pathways in diseased and nondiseased states of liver. They also lay a foundation for development of diagnostic tests utilizing the potential of miRNAs that can not only be used for early detection of DILI but also to differentiate between different types of DILI. More studies on biological functions of miRNA and standardisation of protocol between research laboratories can lead to further advancement in this field. Considering the therapeutic and diagnostic potential of miRNA, the major challenge would be to integrate these findings to clinical settings where it can be used for the treatment of cases with DILI.
微小RNA（miRNA或miR）是最丰富且稳定的一类小RNA。与细胞中存在的典型RNA分子不同，它们不编码蛋白质，但可控制翻译。因此，它们在细胞过程的调控中发挥着重要作用。已表明miRNA可差异调节各种基因，并且在药物诱导的毒性过程中，某些miRNA的表达水平在肝脏和血清中会发生数倍变化。本综述总结了有关miRNA生物学功能及其作为药物性肝损伤诊断生物标志物的潜在用途的一些最新发现。
本文所呈现的信息取自已发表的文献，包括关于药物性肝损伤机制、肝脏病理生理学中的miRNA以及探索miRNA作为药物性肝损伤生物标志物用途的原创研究和综述。使用搜索引擎进行文献检索：- PUBMED、谷歌学术以及相关期刊网站。
近期研究深入了解了miRNA在肝脏疾病和非疾病状态下调节各种途径的能力。它们还为利用miRNA潜力开发诊断测试奠定了基础，这些测试不仅可用于早期检测药物性肝损伤，还可区分不同类型的药物性肝损伤。对miRNA生物学功能的更多研究以及研究实验室之间方案的标准化可推动该领域的进一步发展。考虑到miRNA的治疗和诊断潜力，主要挑战将是将这些发现整合到临床环境中，使其可用于治疗药物性肝损伤病例。
