non-coding rnas in retinal development非编码rna在视网膜的发展.pdfVIP

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2012, 13, 558-578; doi:10.3390/ijm OPEN ACCESS International Journal of Molecular Sciences ISSN 1422-0067 /journal/ijms Review Non-Coding RNAs in Retinal Development Nicola A. Maiorano and Robert Hindges * MRC Centre for Developmental Neurobiology, King’s College London, New Hunt’s House, Guy’s Campus, London, SE1 1UL, UK; E-Mail: nicola.maiorano@kcl.ac.uk * Author to whom correspondence should be addressed; E-Mail: robert.hindges@kcl.ac.uk; Tel.: +44-207-848-8157; Fax: +44-207-848-6550. Received: 3 December 2011; in revised form: 20 December 2011 / Accepted: 21 December 2011 / Published: 5 January 2012 Abstract: Retinal development is dependent on an accurately functioning network of transcriptional and translational regulators. Among the diverse classes of molecules involved, non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) play a significant role. Members of this family are present in the cell as transcripts, but are not translated into proteins. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small ncRNAs that act as post-transcriptional regulators. During the last decade, they have been implicated in a variety of biological processes, including the development of the nervous system. On the other hand, long-ncRNAs (lncRNAs) represent a different class of ncRNAs that act mainly through processes involving chromatin remodeling and epigenetic mechanisms. The visual system is a prominent model to investigate the molecular mechanisms