Mirra Paola, Nigro Cecilia, Prevenzano Immacolata, Leone Alessia, Raciti Gregory Alexander, Formisano Pietro, Beguinot Francesco, Miele Claudia
Istituto per l'Endocrinologia e l'Oncologia Sperimentale "Gaetano Salvatore" - CNR, Naples, Italy.
Department of Translational Medical Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy.
Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2018 Feb 26;9:46. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2018.00046. eCollection 2018.
Glucose serves as a primary, and for some tissues the unique, fuel source in order to generate and maintain the biological functions. Hyperglycemia is a hallmark of type 2 diabetes and is the direct consequence of perturbations in the glucose homeostasis. Insulin resistance, referred to as a reduced response of target tissues to the hormone, contributes to the development of hyperglycemia. The molecular mechanisms responsible for the altered glucose homeostasis are numerous and not completely understood. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are now recognized as regulators of the lipid and glucose metabolism and are involved in the onset of metabolic diseases. Indeed, these small non-coding RNA molecules operate in the RNA silencing and posttranscriptional regulation of gene expression and may modulate the levels of kinases and enzymes in the glucose metabolism. Therefore, a better characterization of the function of miRNAs and a deeper understanding of their role in disease may represent a fundamental step toward innovative treatments addressing the causes, not only the symptoms, of hyperglycemia, using approaches aimed at restoring either miRNAs or their specific targets. In this review, we outline the current understanding regarding the impact of miRNAs in the glucose metabolism and highlight the need for further research focused on altered key kinases and enzymes in metabolic diseases.
葡萄糖作为主要的燃料来源,对某些组织而言还是唯一的燃料来源,以产生并维持生物学功能。高血糖是2型糖尿病的标志,是葡萄糖稳态失衡的直接后果。胰岛素抵抗,即靶组织对该激素的反应性降低,会促使高血糖的发展。导致葡萄糖稳态改变的分子机制众多且尚未完全明确。微小RNA(miRNA)如今被认为是脂质和葡萄糖代谢的调节因子,并参与代谢疾病的发生。实际上,这些小的非编码RNA分子在RNA沉默和基因表达的转录后调控中发挥作用,可能会调节葡萄糖代谢中激酶和酶的水平。因此,更好地表征miRNA的功能并更深入地了解它们在疾病中的作用,可能是朝着创新治疗迈出的关键一步,这些治疗方法不仅针对高血糖的症状,还针对其病因,采用旨在恢复miRNA或其特定靶点的方法。在本综述中,我们概述了目前对miRNA在葡萄糖代谢中作用的理解,并强调了进一步研究聚焦于代谢疾病中关键激酶和酶改变的必要性。