In molecular biology, mir-720 microRNA is a short RNA molecule. MicroRNAs function to regulate the expression levels of other genes by several mechanisms.
miR-720 expression has been found to vary in the serum levels of women carrying fetuses with and without neural tube defects. [1] miR-720 is significantly downregulated following child delivery, thus suggesting a role in pregnancy as well as a possible placental derivation.
miR-720 is upregulated in myelodysplastic syndromes, [2] in molar tooth germ in newborn mice following anti-miR-214 injection [3] and in mesangial cells (specialised smooth muscle cells in the kidneys) treated with microRNA inhibitor. [4]
miR-720 was shown to target the pluripotency factor Nanog and to upregulate DNMTs. [5] miR-720 controlled stem cell phenotype, proliferation, and differentiation of human dental pulp cells. Dental pulp includes mesenchymal (stem) cells, blood vessels, blood and peripheral nerves. Repression of the pluripotency factor Nanog and upregulation of DNMTs in dental pulp cells by miR-720 initiated odontoblastic differentiation. Therefore, it was suggested that odontoblastic differentiation of dental pulp stem cells required miR-720 that repressed Nanog and induced Dnmt3a and Dnmt3b.
Oct-4, also known as POU5F1, is a protein that in humans is encoded by the POU5F1 gene. Oct-4 is a homeodomain transcription factor of the POU family. It is critically involved in the self-renewal of undifferentiated embryonic stem cells. As such, it is frequently used as a marker for undifferentiated cells. Oct-4 expression must be closely regulated; too much or too little will cause differentiation of the cells.
Homeobox protein NANOG(hNanog) is a transcriptional factor that helps embryonic stem cells (ESCs) maintain pluripotency by suppressing cell determination factors. hNanog is encoded in humans by the NANOG gene. Several types of cancer are associated with NANOG.
In biology, reprogramming refers to erasure and remodeling of epigenetic marks, such as DNA methylation, during mammalian development or in cell culture. Such control is also often associated with alternative covalent modifications of histones.
The miR-1 microRNA precursor is a small micro RNA that regulates its target protein's expression in the cell. microRNAs are transcribed as ~70 nucleotide precursors and subsequently processed by the Dicer enzyme to give products at ~22 nucleotides. In this case the mature sequence comes from the 3' arm of the precursor. The mature products are thought to have regulatory roles through complementarity to mRNA. In humans there are two distinct microRNAs that share an identical mature sequence, and these are called miR-1-1 and miR-1-2.
Induced pluripotent stem cells are a type of pluripotent stem cell that can be generated directly from a somatic cell. The iPSC technology was pioneered by Shinya Yamanaka and Kazutoshi Takahashi in Kyoto, Japan, who together showed in 2006 that the introduction of four specific genes, collectively known as Yamanaka factors, encoding transcription factors could convert somatic cells into pluripotent stem cells. Shinya Yamanaka was awarded the 2012 Nobel Prize along with Sir John Gurdon "for the discovery that mature cells can be reprogrammed to become pluripotent."
SRY -box 2, also known as SOX2, is a transcription factor that is essential for maintaining self-renewal, or pluripotency, of undifferentiated embryonic stem cells. Sox2 has a critical role in maintenance of embryonic and neural stem cells.
Rex1 (Zfp-42) is a known marker of pluripotency, and is usually found in undifferentiated embryonic stem cells. In addition to being a marker for pluripotency, its regulation is also critical in maintaining a pluripotent state. As the cells begin to differentiate, Rex1 is severely and abruptly downregulated.
microRNA 21 also known as hsa-mir-21 or miRNA21 is a mammalian microRNA that is encoded by the MIR21 gene.
Cell potency is a cell's ability to differentiate into other cell types. The more cell types a cell can differentiate into, the greater its potency. Potency is also described as the gene activation potential within a cell, which like a continuum, begins with totipotency to designate a cell with the most differentiation potential, pluripotency, multipotency, oligopotency, and finally unipotency.
MiR-155 is a microRNA that in humans is encoded by the MIR155 host gene or MIR155HG. MiR-155 plays a role in various physiological and pathological processes. Exogenous molecular control in vivo of miR-155 expression may inhibit malignant growth, viral infections, and enhance the progression of cardiovascular diseases.
In molecular biology, mir-145 microRNA is a short RNA molecule that in humans is encoded by the MIR145 gene. MicroRNAs function to regulate the expression levels of other genes by several mechanisms.
In molecular biology, miR-184 microRNA is a short non-coding RNA molecule. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) function as posttranscriptional regulators of expression levels of other genes by several mechanisms. Several targets for miR-184 have been described, including that of mediators of neurological development, apoptosis and it has been suggested that miR-184 plays an essential role in development.
In molecular biology miR-203 is a short non-coding RNA molecule. MicroRNAs function to regulate the expression levels of other genes by several mechanisms, such as translational repression and Argonaute-catalyzed messenger RNA cleavage. miR-203 has been identified as a skin-specific microRNA, and it forms an expression gradient that defines the boundary between proliferative epidermal basal progenitors and terminally differentiating suprabasal cells. It has also been found upregulated in psoriasis and differentially expressed in some types of cancer.
In molecular biology MicroRNA-223 (miR-223) is a short RNA molecule. MicroRNAs function to regulate the expression levels of other genes by several mechanisms. miR-223 is a hematopoietic specific microRNA with crucial functions in myeloid lineage development. It plays an essential role in promoting granulocytic differentiation while also being associated with the suppression of erythrocytic differentiation. miR-223 is commonly repressed in hepatocellular carcinoma and leukemia. Higher expression levels of miRNA-223 are associated with extranodal marginal-zone lymphoma of mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue of the stomach and recurrent ovarian cancer. In some cancers the microRNA-223 down-regulation is correlated with higher tumor burden, disease aggressiveness, and poor prognostic factors. MicroRNA-223 is also associated with rheumatoid arthritis, sepsis, type 2 diabetes, and hepatic ischemia.
miR-134 is a family of microRNA precursors found in mammals, including humans. MicroRNAs are typically transcribed as ~70 nucleotide precursors and subsequently processed by the Dicer enzyme to give a ~22 nucleotide product. The excised region or, mature product, of the miR-134 precursor is the microRNA mir-134.
miR-146 is a family of microRNA precursors found in mammals, including humans. The ~22 nucleotide mature miRNA sequence is excised from the precursor hairpin by the enzyme Dicer. This sequence then associates with RISC which effects RNA interference.
miR-296 is a family of microRNA precursors found in mammals, including humans. The ~22 nucleotide mature miRNA sequence is excised from the precursor hairpin by the enzyme Dicer. This sequence then associates with RISC which effects RNA interference.
In molecular biology mir-339 microRNA is a short RNA molecule. MicroRNAs function to regulate the expression levels of other genes by several mechanisms. miR-339-5p expression was associated with overall survival in breast cancer.
In molecular biology mir-367 microRNA is a short RNA molecule. MicroRNAs function to regulate the expression levels of other genes by several mechanisms.