Yin Xiaocai, Li Hongjun, Zhou Yan
Institute of Medical Biology, Chinese Academy of Medical Science and Peking Union Medical College, Yunnan Key Laboratory of Vaccine Research and Development on Severe Infectious Disease, Kunming 650118, China.
Cells. 2024 Dec 9;13(23):2033. doi: 10.3390/cells13232033.
Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a class of noncoding RNAs that lack the 5'-cap structure and the 3' poly(A) tail. Their distinguishing feature is that the 3' and 5' ends are covalently linked to form a closed circular structure. CircRNAs have a longer half-life and stronger ribonuclease resistance compared with linear RNA. Viral infections lead to the production of circRNA molecules through the transcription and splicing mechanisms of host cells. circRNAs are produced from the transcription and splicing of the viral genome or from the splicing reactions of the host cell gene. They participate in regulating the replication of many viruses, including coronaviruses, human herpesviruses, human immunodeficiency virus, and cytomegalovirus. CircRNAs regulate the infection process by modulating circRNA expression in host cells and affect cellular biological processes. Some circRNAs have been proposed as diagnostic markers for viral infections. In this review, we discussed the properties of virus-derived circRNAs, the biological functions of diverse viruses-derived and host circRNAs during viral infections, and the critical role of circRNAs in the host's antiviral immune defense. Extensive research on the applications of circRNAs can help us better understand gene regulatory networks and disease mechanisms.
环状RNA（circRNAs）是一类缺乏5'-帽结构和3'聚腺苷酸尾的非编码RNA。它们的显著特征是3'端和5'端共价连接形成封闭的环状结构。与线性RNA相比，circRNAs具有更长的半衰期和更强的核糖核酸酶抗性。病毒感染通过宿主细胞的转录和剪接机制导致circRNA分子的产生。circRNAs由病毒基因组的转录和剪接产生，或由宿主细胞基因的剪接反应产生。它们参与调节包括冠状病毒、人类疱疹病毒、人类免疫缺陷病毒和巨细胞病毒在内的多种病毒的复制。circRNAs通过调节宿主细胞中circRNA的表达来调节感染过程，并影响细胞生物学过程。一些circRNAs已被提议作为病毒感染的诊断标志物。在本综述中，我们讨论了病毒衍生的circRNAs的特性、病毒感染期间不同病毒衍生的和宿主circRNAs的生物学功能，以及circRNAs在宿主抗病毒免疫防御中的关键作用。对circRNAs应用的广泛研究有助于我们更好地理解基因调控网络和疾病机制。
