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MicroRNA-21 gene and cancer

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Abstract

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of 18–27-nucleotides single-stranded RNA molecules that regulate gene expression at the post-transcriptional level. It has been demonstrated that miRNAs regulate a variety of physiological functions, including development, cell differentiation, proliferation, and apoptosis. There are growing evidence showed that miRNAs can affect the genesis and development of tumor and play a kind of tumor suppressor or oncogenic function by regulating its targetted gene-related signal pathway. miRNA-21 is one of the early discovered miRNAs in human cells, and the expression of miRNA-21 is significantly upregulated in different kinds of solid tumors. Its abnormal expression levels are closely associated with pathogenesis of cancers. This review summarizes the recent study on the field of miRNA-21 and its association with cancer.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by Doctoral Science Foundation of He Nan University of Science.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Animal Science and Technology College, He Nan University of Science and Technology, Luoyang City, 471003, Henan Province, People’s Republic of China

    Yong Huang, You Bing Yang, Xiao Hui Zhang, Xue Li Yu, Zhan Bin Wang & Xiang Chao Cheng

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  1. Yong Huang
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  6. Xiang Chao Cheng
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Correspondence to Yong Huang.

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Huang, Y., Yang, Y.B., Zhang, X.H. et al. MicroRNA-21 gene and cancer. Med Oncol 30, 376 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12032-012-0376-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12032-012-0376-8

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