Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium.
Complex Genetics of Alzheimer's Disease Group, VIB Center for Molecular Neurology, Antwerp, Belgium.
Wiley Interdiscip Rev RNA. 2024 Nov-Dec;15(6):e1872. doi: 10.1002/wrna.1872.
Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are closed RNA loops present in humans and other organisms. Various circRNAs have an essential role in diseases, including cancer. Cells can release circRNAs into the extracellular space of adjacent biofluids and can be present in extracellular vesicles. Due to their circular nature, extracellular circRNAs (excircRNAs) are more stable than their linear counterparts and are abundant in many biofluids, such as blood plasma and urine. circRNAs' link with disease suggests their extracellular counterparts have high biomarker potential. However, circRNAs and the extracellular space are challenging research domains, as they consist of complex biological systems plagued with nomenclature issues and a wide variety of protocols with different advantages and disadvantages. Here, we summarize what is known about excircRNAs, the current challenges in the field, and what is needed to improve extracellular circRNA research.
环状 RNA（circRNAs）是存在于人类和其他生物体中的封闭 RNA 环。各种 circRNAs 在疾病中具有重要作用，包括癌症。细胞可以将 circRNAs 释放到邻近生物体液的细胞外空间中，并且可以存在于细胞外囊泡中。由于其环状性质，细胞外 circRNAs（excircRNAs）比其线性对应物更稳定，并且在许多生物体液中丰富，如血浆和尿液。circRNAs 与疾病的联系表明其细胞外对应物具有高的生物标志物潜力。然而，circRNAs 和细胞外空间是具有挑战性的研究领域，因为它们由复杂的生物系统组成，存在命名问题和各种具有不同优缺点的协议。在这里，我们总结了已知的 excircRNAs、该领域当前的挑战以及改善细胞外 circRNA 研究所需的条件。
