MicroRNA News and Research

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In genetics, microRNAs (miRNA) are single-stranded RNA molecules of 21-23 nucleotides in length, which regulate gene expression. miRNAs are encoded by genes from whose DNA they are transcribed but miRNAs are not translated into protein (i.e. they are non-coding RNAs); instead each primary transcript (a pri-miRNA) is processed into a short stem-loop structure called a pre-miRNA and finally into a functional miRNA. Mature miRNA molecules are partially complementary to one or more messenger RNA (mRNA) molecules, and their main function is to down-regulate gene expression.

New advances in miRNA

miRNA research is now one of the most interesting areas in the life science world, reports Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News (GEN).

From Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. 3 Mar 2008

Single microRNA plays role in innate immune response

Over the last few years scientists have discovered hundreds of microRNAs - tiny RNAs that regulate the expression of protein-coding genes.

20 Feb 2008

Discovery of previously unknown mechanism that leads to cleft palate

By creating a genetic mutation in zebrafish, University of Oregon scientists say they've discovered a previously unknown mechanism for cleft palate, a common birth defect in humans that has challenged medical professionals for centuries.

12 Feb 2008

Beginnings of complex life traced to microRNA

Dartmouth College researchers and colleagues from the University of Bristol in the U.K. have traced the beginnings of complex life, i.e. vertebrates, to microRNA.

12 Feb 2008

microRNAs may help predict survival in liver cancer

Tiny molecules that help cells regulate which proteins they make might one day help doctors predict which liver-cancer patients are likely to live longer than others, new research suggests.

4 Feb 2008

Link between microRNA expression patterns and poor outcomes for colon cancer

Preliminary research has found an association between certain microRNA expression patterns and poor survival and treatment outcomes for colon cancer, according to a study in the January 30 issue of JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association.

30 Jan 2008

Discovery of novel molecular pattern linked to colon cancer prognosis

An international research team has identified a link between the expression patterns of a class of molecules called microRNAs and how a patient's colon cancer may progress.

29 Jan 2008

New approach to gene therapy

RNA interference (RNAi) represents an innovative new strategy for using small RNA molecules to silence specific genes associated with disease processes, and a series of review articles describing the state-of-the-art and potential therapeutic applications of RNAi and microRNAs will begin with two review papers in the January 2008 issue (Volume 19, Number 1) of Human Gene Therapy, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.

24 Jan 2008

Molecules might identify high-risk acute-leukemia patients

New research suggests that certain small molecules used by cells to control the proteins they make might also help doctors identify adult acute-leukemia patients who are likely to respond poorly to therapy.

16 Jan 2008

MIT reports single gene can encode as many as four different functions

MIT scientists have found a new way that DNA can carry out its work that is about as surprising as discovering that a mold used to cast a metal tool can also serve as a tool itself, with two complementary shapes each showing distinct functional roles.

14 Jan 2008

Small pieces of ribonucleic acid prevent spread of breast cancer

Howard Hughes Medical Institute researchers have identified small pieces of ribonucleic acid (RNA) that suppress the spread of breast cancer to the lungs and bone.

10 Jan 2008

microRNA molecules block breast cancer's ability to spread

Researchers have identified a specific group of microRNA molecules that are responsible for controlling genes that cause breast cancer metastasis.

10 Jan 2008

New biomarker for predicting liver cancer spread and survival discovered

New research has shown that a unique pattern of microRNAs, small RNA molecules that regulate gene activity, can accurately predict whether liver cancer will spread and whether liver cancer patients will have shorter or longer survival, even patients with early stage disease.

7 Jan 2008

Scientists identify and repress breast cancer stem cells in mouse tissue

By manipulating highly specific gene-regulating molecules called microRNAs, scientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) report that they have succeeded in singling out and repressing stem-like cells in mouse breast tissue - cells that are widely thought to give rise to cancer.

18 Dec 2007