Groundbreaking research uncovers the role of miRNAs in driving cancer while offering innovative diagnostic tools and therapies, including solutions to chemotherapy resistance. Study: miRNA interplay: Mechanisms and therapeutic interventions in cancer. Image Credit: Shutterstock AI / Shutterstock.
com A recent review published in the journal MedComm Oncology describes how microRNAs (miRNAs) interact to cause cancer and their potential role in the diagnosis and treatment of this disease. What are miRNAs? The first miRNA was discovered in 1993 in Caenorhabditis elegans , a commonly used animal model, and has since been detected in both plants and animals. After their synthesis as primary miRNAs, miRNAs undergo processing to become mature functional miRNAs.
Functional miRNAs are found in both intron and exon noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs) and the introns of pre-RNAs. The primary activity of miRNAs is to prevent messenger RNA (mRNA) translation by either breaking down mRNA or binding to the 3’ untranslated region (3’ UTR) of a target RNA molecule to repress the expression of protein-coding genes. In fact, miRNAs post-transcriptionally regulate over 60% of human genes coding for proteins and modulate all aspects of the cell cycle from growth to differentiation and apoptosis.
The role of miRNAs in cancer development Dysregulation of miRNAs can lead to cancer, as these molecules regulate specific genes involved in cell proliferation, apoptosis, migration, and invasion. Many miRNAs leave .