Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Turin, 10124 Turin, Italy.
Cells. 2020 Jun 28;9(7):1574. doi: 10.3390/cells9071574.
MicroRNAs (miRNAs), a class of small non-coding RNA molecules, are responsible for RNA silencing and post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression. They can mediate a fine-tuned crosstalk among coding and non-coding RNA molecules sharing miRNA response elements (MREs). In a suitable environment, both coding and non-coding RNA molecules can be targeted by the same miRNAs and can indirectly regulate each other by competing for them. These RNAs, otherwise known as competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs), lead to an additional post-transcriptional regulatory layer, where non-coding RNAs can find new significance. The miRNA-mediated interplay among different types of RNA molecules has been observed in many different contexts. The analyses of ceRNA networks in cancer and other pathologies, as well as in other physiological conditions, provide new opportunities for interpreting data for the field of personalized medicine. The development of novel computational tools, providing putative predictions of ceRNA interactions, is a rapidly growing field of interest. In this review, I discuss and present the current knowledge of the ceRNA mechanism and its implications in a broad spectrum of different pathologies, such as cardiovascular or autoimmune diseases, cancers and neurodegenerative disorders.
微小 RNA（miRNAs）是一类小型非编码 RNA 分子，负责 RNA 沉默和基因表达的转录后调控。它们可以介导编码和非编码 RNA 分子之间的精细串扰，这些分子共享 miRNA 反应元件（MREs）。在合适的环境中，编码和非编码 RNA 分子都可以被相同的 miRNAs 靶向，并且可以通过竞争它们来间接相互调节。这些 RNA ，也称为竞争性内源 RNA（ceRNA），导致了一个额外的转录后调控层，其中非编码 RNA 可以找到新的意义。在许多不同的情况下都观察到了 miRNA 介导的不同类型 RNA 分子之间的相互作用。在癌症和其他病理学以及其他生理条件下对 ceRNA 网络的分析，为个性化医学领域的数据解释提供了新的机会。开发新的计算工具，提供 ceRNA 相互作用的推测预测，是一个快速增长的研究领域。在这篇综述中，我讨论并介绍了 ceRNA 机制及其在广泛的不同病理学中的意义，如心血管或自身免疫性疾病、癌症和神经退行性疾病。
