Zhang Lihua, Miller Daniel, Yang Qiuping, Wu Bin
Department of Geriatrics, First Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University, Kunming, Yunnan, 650031, China.
School of Computing, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL, 36688, USA.
Methods Mol Biol. 2017;1617:241-260. doi: 10.1007/978-1-4939-7046-9_18.
Even though it is a pandemic health problem worldwide, the pathogenesis of obesity is poorly understood. Recently, emerging studies verified that microRNAs (miRNAs) are involved in complicated metabolic processes including adipocyte differentiation, fat cell formation (adipogenesis), obesity-related insulin resistance and inflammation. Many regulatory networks have been identified in murine adipose tissue, but those in human adipose tissue are not as well known. In addition, miRNAs have been detected in circulation, and thus may be usable as diagnostic indicators. MiRNAs may play an important part in regulating metabolic functions in adipose tissues and, by extension, obesity and its associated disorders. Consequently, they may be potential candidates for therapeutic targets and biomarkers.
尽管肥胖是一个全球性的大流行健康问题，但其发病机制仍未得到充分了解。最近，新出现的研究证实，微小RNA（miRNA）参与了包括脂肪细胞分化、脂肪细胞形成（脂肪生成）、肥胖相关胰岛素抵抗和炎症在内的复杂代谢过程。在小鼠脂肪组织中已经确定了许多调节网络，但人类脂肪组织中的调节网络并不那么为人所知。此外，已经在循环系统中检测到miRNA，因此它们可用作诊断指标。miRNA可能在调节脂肪组织的代谢功能中发挥重要作用，进而在肥胖及其相关疾病中发挥作用。因此，它们可能是治疗靶点和生物标志物的潜在候选者。
