Figures & data
Figure 1. miR-21 transcriptional regulation and biogenesis. MiR-21 expression is regulated at the transcriptional and post-transcriptional levels. Transcription of the primary miRNA is medicated in part by transcription factors including signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) and activator protein 1 (AP-1). This pri-miRNA is then processed by a Drosha-containing complex, which can be regulated by additional cofactors such as small and mother against decapentaplegic (SMAD) proteins. Upon cleavage of the pri-miRNA, the resulting pre-miRNA is exported to the cytoplasm via an exportin-5 dependent pathway. There, the pre-miRNA is further processed and cleaved by Dicer to generate the mature, ∼ 22 nt form which is loaded into the RNA-included silencing complex (RISC) and directed towards target mRNAs.
