乙型肝炎病毒感染的肝癌患者肝组织中乙型肝炎病毒cccDNA的检测

HBV属嗜肝DNA病毒家族,其基因组是双链松弛环状DNA(rcDNA),相对分子量为(1.6～2.0)×109,全长约为3.2 kb。在HBV的生命周期中,共价闭合环状DNA (cccDNA)是HBV的原始复制模板,对HBV的复制及感染状态的建立具有十分重要的意义。清除HBV cccDNA是目前抗HBV药物研究的一个重要目标。我们对天津市第三中心医院收治的20例HBV感染的肝癌患者肝组织(包括癌     

环状RNA在恶性肿瘤发生发展和诊疗中的研究进展

环状RNA(circRNA)是一类共价闭合环状的内源性非编RNA,在各种真核细胞基因组广泛存在。因其具有丰度高、结构稳定、高度保守及组织特异表达等性质,成为最近几年研究的热点。研究发现,circRNA竞争性吸附微小RNA(miRNA),作为miRNA海绵,参与多种基因的表达调控,在肿瘤发生发展、侵袭转移等过程中发挥重要作用。该文就circRNA的起源、特征、功能及其在肿瘤发生发展、侵袭转移、诊断预后方面的研究作以下综述。     

Distinct Patterns of Genetic Variations in Potential Functional Elements in Long Noncoding RNAs

Non‐protein‐coding RNAs have increasingly been shown to be an important class of regulatory RNAs having significant roles in regulation of gene expression. The long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) gene family presently constitutes a large number of noncoding RNA (ncRNA) loci almost equaling the number of protein‐coding genes. Nevertheless, the biological roles and mechanisms of the majority of lncRNAs are poorly understood, with exceptions of a very few well‐studied candidates. The availability of genome‐scale variation datasets, and increasing number of variant loci from genome‐wide association studies falling in lncRNA loci have motivated us to understand the patterns of genomic variations in lncRNA loci, their potential functional correlates, and selection in populations. In the present study, we have performed a comprehensive analysis of genomic variations in lncRNA loci. We analyzed for patterns and distributions of genomic variations with respect to potential functional domains in lncRNAs. The analysis reveals a distinct distribution of variations in subclasses of long ncRNAs and in potential functional domains of lncRNAs. We further examined signals of selections and allele frequencies of these prioritized set of lncRNAs. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first and comprehensive large‐scale analysis of genetic variations in long ncRNAs.     

Circular RNA hsa_circ_0000567 can be used as a promising diagnostic biomarker for human colorectal cancer

Background

Recent studies have revealed that circular RNAs are involved in the biological process of some kinds of human cancers. However, little is known about their diagnostic values and functions in colorectal cancer (CRC).

Methods

The expression levels of hsa_circ_0000567 in 102 paired CRC tissues and adjacent noncancerous tissues, 5 CRC cell lines, and a normal colorectal epithelial cell line were detected by quantitative real‐time polymerase chain reaction (qRT‐PCR). The correlations between hsa_circ_0000567 expression levels and the clinicopathological factors of patients with CRC were analyzed. Furthermore, the loss‐of‐function assay was performed to investigate the functions of hsa_circ_0000567 in vitro. Finally, a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was established to evaluate the diagnostic value of hsa_circ_0000567.

Results

Hsa_circ_0000567 expression was significantly downregulated in CRC tissues and CRC cell lines. In addition, the decreased hsa_circ_0000567 expression in CRC was negatively correlated with tumor size (P = .011), lymph metastasis (P = .003), distal metastasis (P < .0001), and tumor–node–metastasis (TNM) stage (P = .003) in CRC. Moreover, knockdown of hsa_circ_0000567 promoted CRC cells proliferation and migration in vitro. Importantly, the area under the ROC curve (AUC) was 0.8653, which indicates hsa_circ_0000567 can serve as a diagnostic biomarker.

Conclusion

Hsa_circ_0000567 may be a novel suppressor and a potential diagnosis biomarker in CRC.

     

环状RNA在血管疾病中的研究进展

环状RNA(circRNA)是一类重要的调控性非编码RNA,其含量丰富、性质稳定、存在广泛,并且可以通过多种机制调控基因表达,在血管疾病的发生发展中发挥重要调控作用。文章综述了circRNA在多种血管疾病中的研究现状,以期为相关领域的研究人员提供参考。