肝脏特异性miR-122的分子生物学特性及功能

THE CHARACTERISTICS AND FUNCTIONS OF MOLECULAR BIOLOGY FOR LIVER-SPECIFIC miR-122

miR-122是在肝脏特异高表达的一种microRNA。研究表明:生理状态下,miR-122在调控肝脏的细胞发育、诱导细胞分化、调节细胞代谢、参与肝细胞应急应答等生命活动过程中发挥重要作用;而在病理状态下,miR-122与丙型肝炎病毒(HCV)和肝细胞肝癌(HCC)密切相关,可能促进HCVRNA复制,并在HCC发生、发展过程中发挥抑癌基因样作用,可能对HCC临床诊断和预后具有重要价值。鉴于miR-122参与调控肝脏生理及肝脏重大疾病的发生、发展等过程,文章详细阐述并讨论miR-122在肝脏中的生物学特性和功能,以及可能的作用机制。肝脏特异性miR-122有可能作为治疗人类肝脏疾病的关键靶点。

miR-122 is specifically and abundantly expressed in the human liver. The recent investigations have demonstrated that under the physiological condition, miR-122 may play important roles in regulating hepatocyte development, differentiation, metabolism, stress responses, and under the pathological condition, the abnormal expression of miR-122 is closely related to hepatitis C virus （HCV） or hepatocellular carcinoma （HCC）, and miR-122 is likely to facilitate replication of HCV RNA or is as a tumor suppressor gene for hepatocarcinogenesis. In addition, miR-122 could have diagnostic and prognostic significance for HCC. Respecting the effects of miR-122 on the major diseases of the human liver, the authors reviewed and analyzed the biological characteristics, diverse functions and possible mechanisms of miR-122. This liver-specific microRNA, miR-122, could be exploited as a key target for the treatment of human liver diseases.