RNA参与获得性性状代际/跨代遗传的功能与机制研究进展

Progress in RNA mediated intergenerational/transgenerational epigenetic inheritance of acquired traits

获得性遗传这一概念在19世纪初被提出后就一直饱受争议,直到近几十年,随着分子生物学和表观遗传学的发展,科学家们才开始重新审视和探究获得性遗传现象的真实性,并对获得性遗传现象的遗传规律、分子载体和调控机制进行了深入的研究.作为新型表观遗传调控因子,非编码RNA表现出多维调控能力,在细胞命运决定、自我更新、细胞增殖和凋亡中发挥着不可或缺的调控作用.近年来的研究发现,非编码RNA及其RNA修饰可以作为表观遗传信息载体介导获得性遗传,为获得性性状的跨代遗传研究提供新的研究思路和视角.本文将针对近年来获得性遗传的研究进展,综述RNA在跨代遗传中的功能及调控机制.

The concept of inheritance of acquired traits has been controversial since it was proposed in the early 19th century,and it was not until recent decades that scientists began to revisit and explore the authenticity of this concept.Recently,researchers have been dedicated to identifying the epigenetic information carriers,the inheritance laws and the regulatory mechanisms of intergenerational/transgenerational epigenetic inheritance of parentally acquired traits.As novel epigenetic regulators,non-coding RNAs show multidimensional capability in regulating gene expression,and play indispensable roles in regulating stem cell fate determination and self-renewal,cell proliferation and apoptosis.In recent years,it has also been found that non-coding RNAs and RNA modifications can be served as epigenetic information carriers to transmit the parentally acquired traits to the offspring,providing new research insights and perspectives for the mechanical exploration of epigenetic inheritance of acquired traits.In this review paper,we will comprehensively summarize the functional roles and molecular mechanisms of RNA in regulating intergenerational/transgenerational epigenetic inheritance of acquired traits in view of the recent research progress in this rising field.