Competitive endogenous RNA network: potential implication for systemic lupus erythematosus

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) hypothesis proposes that RNA transcripts, both coding and non-coding, crosstalk with and coregulate each other using microRNA response elements (MREs). CeRNA analysis tremendously expands functional information of coding and non-coding RNAs. Mounting evidence have shown that various types of RNAs, including pseudogenes, long non-coding RNAs, circular RNAs, and messenger RNAs, can function as ceRNAs in distinct physiological and pathophysiological states. Many validated ceRNA pairs participate in the initiation and progression of cancers, and systemic ceRNA network analyses revealing potential of ceRNAs in diagnosis, therapy, and prognosis of cancers have also been performed.

Areas covered: This review concisely introduces ceRNA hypothesis and characteristics of ceRNA regulations. The major sections focus on representative examples of both protein coding and non-coding RNA transcripts acting as ceRNAs. CeRNA prediction programs and databases and implications of ceRNA network in cancers are then discussed. In the end, we surmise potential implications of ceRNA network for SLE.

Expert opinion: The role of ceRNA network in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) remains undefined. We speculate that dissecting ceRNA network in SLE may help expand our comprehension of roles of transcriptome, particularly non-coding transcripts, and richen our knowledge of pathogenesis, diagnosis, and therapy of SLE.

KEYWORDS:

• ceRNA
• SLE
• miRNA
• lncRNA
• circRNA
• pseudogene

Article highlights

• ceRNA hypothesis proposes that RNA transcripts, both coding and non-coding, crosstalk with and coregulate each other with MRE and this hypothesis attributes new functions for the non-coding RNAs and implies coding-independent functions of coding mRNAs.

• Mounting evidences show that Pseudogenes, lncRNAs, circRNAs, and mRNAs function as ceRNAs in distinct physiological and pathophysiological states.

• Multiple ceRNA prediction programs and databases are developed, greatly facilitating ceRNA researches.

• Many validated ceRNA pairs are reported to participate in initiation and progression of cancers, and systemic ceRNA network analyses reveal roles of ceRNAs in diagnosis, therapy, and prognosis of cancers.

• Dissecting ceRNA network in SLE will expand functional information of transcriptome and richen knowledge of its pathogenesis, diagnosis, and therapy.

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Acknowledgments

We apologize to the authors of any works we inadvertently failed to refer to in this manuscript.

Declaration of interest

The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81473058, 81271759, and 81673258).