Open AccessMicroRNAs - Biology and clinical applications
Author(s) -
Kannan Ranganathan,
Vaishnavi Sivasankar
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
journal of oral and maxillofacial pathology/journal of oral and maxillofacial pathology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.455
H-Index - 25
eISSN - 1998-393X
pISSN - 0973-029X
DOI - 10.4103/0973-029x.140762
Subject(s) - microrna , gene silencing , biology , gene , carcinogenesis , rna interference , gene expression , rna , small rna , non coding rna , regulation of gene expression , function (biology) , computational biology , rna silencing , genetics
MicroRNAs are a highly conserved group of small, non-coding RNA molecules, which are 19-25 nucleotides in size. Previously thought to be evolutionary debris with no evident function, these small RNAs have been found to control gene expression primarily by silencing the gene. MicroRNAs are critical to cell physiology and development. They are also implicated in pathological processes such as autoimmune diseases, viral infections and carcinogenesis.