New Molecular Mechanisms and Clinical Impact of circRNAs in Human Cancer

Next generation RNA sequencing techniques, implemented in the recent years, have allowed us to identify circular RNAs (circRNAs), covalently closed loop structures resulting in RNA molecules that are more stable than linear RNAs. This class of non-coding RNA is emerging to be involved in a variety o...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Cancers 2021-06, Vol.13 (13), p.3154
Main Authors: Fontemaggi, Giulia, Turco, Chiara, Esposito, Gabriella, Di Agostino, Silvia
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biomarkers
Cancer
Cancer therapies
Carcinogenesis
Cell cycle
Cell differentiation
Cell growth
Cell proliferation
Chemoresistance
Cytoplasm
Exonuclease
Gene expression
Gene regulation
Liver cancer
Medical prognosis
Mesenchyme
Metastases
MicroRNAs
miRNA
Molecular modelling
Non-coding RNA
Protein interaction
Proteins
Review
Therapeutic targets
Transcription
Tumors
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Summary:Next generation RNA sequencing techniques, implemented in the recent years, have allowed us to identify circular RNAs (circRNAs), covalently closed loop structures resulting in RNA molecules that are more stable than linear RNAs. This class of non-coding RNA is emerging to be involved in a variety of cell functions during development, differentiation, and in many diseases, including cancer. Among the described biological activities, circRNAs have been implicated in microRNA (miRNA) sequestration, modulation of protein–protein interactions and regulation of mRNA transcription. In human cancer, circRNAs were implicated in the control of oncogenic activities such as tumor cell proliferation, epithelial-mesenchymal transition, invasion, metastasis and chemoresistance. The most widely described mechanism of action of circRNAs is their ability to act as competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs) for miRNAs, lncRNAs and mRNAs, thus impacting along their axis, despite the fact that a variety of additional mechanisms of action are emerging, representing an open and expanding field of study. Furthermore, research is currently focusing on understanding the possible implications of circRNAs in diagnostics, prognosis prediction, effectiveness of therapies and, eventually, therapeutic intervention in human cancer. The purpose of this review is to discuss new knowledge on the mechanisms of circRNA action, beyond ceRNA, their impact on human cancer and to dissect their potential value as biomarkers and therapeutic targets.
ISSN:2072-6694
2072-6694
DOI:10.3390/cancers13133154