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Review
. 2019 Jun 2;10(13):2885-2891.
doi: 10.7150/jca.31167. eCollection 2019.

Regulatory mechanisms and clinical perspectives of circRNA in digestive system neoplasms

Zhenqiang Sun  1 , Chen Chen  1 , Yingfeng Su  2 , Weiwei Wang  3   4 , Shuaixi Yang  1 , Quanbo Zhou  1 , Guixian Wang  1 , Zhen Li  1 , Junmin Song  1 , Zhiyong Zhang  1 , Weitang Yuan  1 , Jinbo Liu  1
Affiliations
Free PMC article
Review

Regulatory mechanisms and clinical perspectives of circRNA in digestive system neoplasms

Zhenqiang Sun et al. J Cancer. .
Free PMC article

Abstract

A new star, circular RNA (circRNA), is a class of noncoding RNA with a stable cyclic structure. Exonic circRNA mainly exists in the eukaryotic cytoplasm. Intronic circRNAs (ciRNA) and exonic circRNAs with introns (EIciRNA) are found in the nucleus. Recent evidences showed the functional diversity of circRNAs, which could be microRNA (miRNA) sponges, interact with protein or translate into small peptide. Due to the change of human eating habits, digestive cancer remains one of the most common cancers worldwide and it is prone to metastasis. Increasing studies have found a number of circRNAs using RNA sequencing technology and displayed double roles of circRNA in digestive cancer. In this review, we surveyed the biogenesis and regulation of circRNAs, discussed circRNA functions and clinical applications (especially circRNAs in exosome) in digestive cancers, which implied that circRNAs could be as potential biomarkers in diagnosis and treatment of digestive cancers in the future.

Keywords: Biogenesis; CircRNA; Clinical applications; Digestive cancers; Regulation.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interest exists.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Biogenesis and regulations of circRNAs. Three modes of circRNA biogenesis are shown in the ring. (a) Flanking intron pairing, which contains ALU repeats, drives the formation of backsplicing. (b) Lariat-driven circularization shapes a lariat. The lariat is spliced. 5'-GU-rich and 3'-C-rich regions assist intron circularization and shape ciRNAs. (c) RBP is involved in the circularization. Based on this, the regulation of circRNA is shown in A, B and C.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Roles of circRNAs in digestive cancers. Green rectangles indicate onco-circRNAs. Red rectangles represent circRNA suppressors.
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