miRNA分子在近日节律调节中的作用

Role of miRNA in circadian rhythmicity:recent progress

miRNA是近几年来发现的一类小RNA,它们在调节基因和蛋白质的表达中发挥重要作用。这些小RNA(-22nt)与3′端的非翻译区(3′-UTRs)结合,从而导致靶mRNA的降解、抑制蛋白质的表达。miRNAs在发育和正常的细胞功能中发挥重要作用。最新研究发现miRNA可能是近日节律的重要调节因子,从而为我们提供了一个新的理解调控生物钟的层面。本文对miRNA在近日节律调节中的功能进行综述。

MicroRNA（miRNA）is a group of recently discovered small RNA molecules that have a significant role in regulating gene and protein expression.These small RNAs（-22nt）can bind to 3′-untranslated regions（3′-UTRs）and induce mRNA degradation and repress protein expression.They play important roles in development and maintenance of normal cell function.More recently,a few studies have suggested that miRNA may also serve as an important regulator of circadian rhythmicity,which casts new lights on our understanding of biological clocks.Here we describe the function of miRNA in regulation of circadian system