Martínez-Hernández Rebeca, Marazuela Mónica
Department of Endocrinology, Hospital Universitario de la Princesa, Instituto de Investigación Princesa, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, C/ Diego de León 62, 28006 Madrid, Spain; Faculty of Medicine, Universidad San Pablo CEU, CEU Universities, Urbanizacion Monteprincipe, Alcorcon, Madrid, Spain.
Department of Endocrinology, Hospital Universitario de la Princesa, Instituto de Investigación Princesa, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, C/ Diego de León 62, 28006 Madrid, Spain.
Best Pract Res Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2023 Mar;37(2):101741. doi: 10.1016/j.beem.2023.101741. Epub 2023 Feb 8.
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small non-coding RNAs that regulate gene expression at the posttranscriptional level. They are emerging as potential biomarkers and as therapeutic targets for several diseases including autoimmune thyroid diseases (AITD). They control a wide range of biological phenomena, including immune activation, apoptosis, differentiation and development, proliferation and metabolism. This function makes miRNAs attractive as disease biomarker candidates or even as therapeutic agents. Because of their stability and reproducibility circulating miRNAs have been an interesting area of research in many diseases, and studies describing their role in the immune response and in autoimmune diseases have progressively developed. The mechanisms underlying AITD remain elusive. AITD pathogenesis is characterized by a multifactorial interplay based on the synergy between susceptibility genes and environmental stimulation, together with epigenetic modulation. Understanding the regulatory role of miRNAs could lead to identify potential susceptibility pathways, diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets for this disease. Herein we update our present knowledge on the role of microRNAs in AITD and discuss on their importance as possible diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers in the most prevalent AITDs: Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT), Graves' disease (GD) and Graves' Ophthalmopathy (GO). This review provides an overview of the state of the art in the pathological roles of microRNAs as well as in possible novel miRNA-based therapeutic approaches in AITD.
微小RNA（miRNA）是一类小的非编码RNA，可在转录后水平调控基因表达。它们正逐渐成为包括自身免疫性甲状腺疾病（AITD）在内的多种疾病的潜在生物标志物和治疗靶点。它们控制着广泛的生物学现象，包括免疫激活、细胞凋亡、分化与发育、增殖和代谢。这种功能使得miRNA成为极具吸引力的疾病生物标志物候选物甚至治疗药物。由于其稳定性和可重复性，循环miRNA已成为许多疾病研究中一个有趣的领域，并且描述其在免疫反应和自身免疫性疾病中作用的研究也在不断发展。AITD的潜在机制仍然不明。AITD的发病机制具有多因素相互作用的特点，基于易感基因与环境刺激之间的协同作用以及表观遗传调控。了解miRNA的调控作用可能有助于识别该疾病的潜在易感途径、诊断生物标志物和治疗靶点。在此，我们更新了关于微小RNA在AITD中作用的现有知识，并讨论了它们在最常见的AITD：桥本甲状腺炎（HT）、格雷夫斯病（GD）和格雷夫斯眼病（GO）中作为可能的诊断和预后生物标志物的重要性。本综述概述了微小RNA的病理作用以及AITD中基于miRNA的可能新治疗方法的研究现状。
