Circular RNA: an emerging key player in RNA world
Citations Over TimeTop 1% of 2016 papers
Abstract
Insights into the circular RNA (circRNA) exploration have revealed that they are abundant in eukaryotic transcriptomes. Diverse genomic regions can generate different types of RNA circles, implying their diversity. Covalently closed loop structures elevate the stability of this new type of noncoding RNA. High-throughput sequencing analyses suggest that circRNAs exhibit tissue- and developmental-specific expression, indicating that they may play crucial roles in multiple cellular processes. Strikingly, several circRNAs could function as microRNA sponges and regulate gene transcription, highlighting a new class of important regulators. Here, we review the recent advances in knowledge of endogenous circRNA biogenesis, properties and functions. We further discuss the current findings about circRNAs in human diseases. In plants, the roles of circRNAs remain a mystery. Online resources and bioinformatics identification of circRNAs are essential for the analysis of circRNA biology, although different strategies yield divergent results. The understanding of circRNA functions remains limited; however, circRNAs are enriching the RNA world, acting as an emerging key player.
Related Papers
- → Circular RNA profiling reveals that circular RNAs from ANXA2 can be used as new biomarkers for multiple sclerosis(2017)128 cited
- → Generation of 2′,3′-Cyclic Phosphate-Containing RNAs as a Hidden Layer of the Transcriptome(2018)101 cited
- → Circular RNAs: The Brain Transcriptome Comes Full Circle(2020)62 cited
- → Methods for analysis of circular RNAs(2019)58 cited
- → RNA degradation compromises the reliability of microRNA expression profiling(2009)102 cited