表观遗传修饰调控微小RNA表达在肺癌中的研究进展

A Review of Epigenetic Modifications Regulate MicroRNA Expression in Lung Cancer

肺癌是全世界癌症引起死亡中较常见的一种。近年来,参与肺癌发病的分子机制被逐步揭开,但是其发生发展的确切机制并未完全阐明。其中微小RNAs(microRNAs,miRNAs)是一种短小并且广泛存在于植物、病毒及人类等各种生物中的内源性单链的非编码RNA。miRNAs在正常肺组织中发挥着多种功能,它参与细胞生长、代谢、增殖和分化等众多生物学过程。而miRNAs的异常表达与肺肿瘤的发生、发展、侵袭、转移相关。因此,miRNAs可被视为一种新的生物标志物。与编码蛋白质的基因类似,miRNA的表达和功能受多种因素以及表观遗传网络(包括DNA甲基化和组蛋白修饰机制)的调控。此外,miRNAs本身也能调控那些表观遗传修饰的关键酶来影响表观修饰。miRNA与表观基因学之间的相互联系将有助于我们研发以miRNA为导向的肺癌诊断、治疗和预后的方案。

Lung cancer is one of the primary causes of cancer-induced death among the world.Although the network of molecular implicated in lung cancer is gradually revealed,the exact molecular mechanism of its occurrence and development has not been fully elucidated.As a class of small and endogenous single-stranded non-coding RNAs,microRNAs(miRNAs)are found in a wide range of organisms from plants,viruses to humans.miRNAs involve various functions in normal lung tissue development.They take part in a large amount of biological processes including cell growth,metabolism,proliferation and differentiation.However,aberrant expression of miRNAs could induce the occurrence,development,invasion and metastasis of lung tumor,so it is deemed the novel biomarkers.Similar to that of protein-coding genes,expression and function of miRNA are regulated by various factors and the epigenetic network which includes DNA methylation and histone modification.Moreover,key enzymes driving epigenetic modifications are regulated by miRNAs.Therefore,better understanding of inextricable linkage between miRNAs and epigenome will provides a basis for the feasibility of miRNA-orientated diagnostic,therapeutic and prognostic strategies related to lung cancer in future.