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Molecular Cancer
Published in: Molecular Cancer 1/2019

Open Access 01-12-2019 | Review

The novel roles of circRNAs in human cancer

Authors: Qingfeng Shang, Zhi Yang, Renbing Jia, Shengfang Ge

Published in: Molecular Cancer | Issue 1/2019

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Abstract

Covalently closed single-stranded circular RNAs (circRNAs) consist of introns or exons and are widely present in eukaryotic cells. CircRNAs generally have low expression levels and relatively stable structures compared with messenger RNAs (mRNAs), most of which are located in the cytoplasm and often act in cell type and tissue-specific manners, indicating that they may serve as novel biomarkers. In recent years, circRNAs have gradually become a hotspot in the field of RNA and cancer research, but the functions of most circRNAs have not yet been discovered. Known circRNAs can affect the biogenesis of cancers in diverse ways, such as functioning as a microRNA (miRNA) sponges, combining with RNA binding proteins (RBPs), working as a transcription factor and translation of proteins. In this review, we summarize the characteristics and types of circRNAs, introduce the biogenesis of circRNAs, discuss the emerging functions and databases on circRNAs and present the current challenges of circRNAs studies.
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Metadata
Title
The novel roles of circRNAs in human cancer
Authors
Qingfeng Shang
Zhi Yang
Renbing Jia
Shengfang Ge
Publication date
01-12-2019
Publisher
BioMed Central
Published in
Molecular Cancer / Issue 1/2019
Electronic ISSN: 1476-4598
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12943-018-0934-6

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