Ankasha Sheril June, Shafiee Mohamad Nasir, Wahab Norhazlina Abdul, Ali Raja Affendi Raja, Mokhtar Norfilza Mohd
Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, University Kebangsaan.
Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Faculty of Medicine, University Kebangsaan.
Oncol Rev. 2018 May 11;12(1):344. doi: 10.4081/oncol.2018.344. eCollection 2018 Jan 30.
MicroRNA (miRNA) is a small non-coding RNA with an established function to regulate genes at the post-transcriptional level leading to suppression or degradation of its messenger RNA expression (mRNA). Its dysregulation plays a vital role in a variety of biological and pathological processes including cancer. A lot of algorithms have been established to predict the target sites of miRNA, but experimentally identifying and validating its target region is still lacking. Guidance in experimental procedures is really needed to find genuine miRNA targets. Therefore, in this review, we provide an outline on the workflow in predicting and validating the targeted sites of miRNA using several methods as a guideline for the scientists. The final outcome of this type of experiment is essential to explore the major impact of miRNAmRNA interaction involved in the biological processes and to assist miRNA-based drug development in the future.
微小RNA（miRNA）是一种小的非编码RNA，具有在转录后水平调控基因的既定功能，可导致其信使RNA表达（mRNA）的抑制或降解。其失调在包括癌症在内的各种生物学和病理过程中起着至关重要的作用。已经建立了许多算法来预测miRNA的靶位点，但仍缺乏对其靶区域进行实验鉴定和验证的方法。在实验过程中确实需要指导以找到真正的miRNA靶标。因此，在本综述中，我们概述了使用几种方法预测和验证miRNA靶位点的工作流程，作为科学家的指导方针。这类实验的最终结果对于探索miRNA与mRNA相互作用在生物过程中的主要影响以及未来辅助基于miRNA的药物开发至关重要。
