Abstract
Glucose serves as a primary, and for some tissues the unique, fuel source in order to generate and maintain the biological functions. Hyperglycemia is a hallmark of type 2 diabetes and is the direct consequence of perturbations in the glucose homeostasis. Insulin resistance, referred to as a reduced response of target tissues to the hormone, contributes to the development of hyperglycemia. The molecular mechanisms responsible for the altered glucose homeostasis are numerous and not completely understood. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are now recognized as regulators of the lipid and glucose metabolism and are involved in the onset of metabolic diseases. Indeed, these small non-coding RNA molecules operate in the RNA silencing and posttranscriptional regulation of gene expression and may modulate the levels of kinases and enzymes in the glucose metabolism. Therefore, a better characterization of the function of miRNAs and a deeper understanding of their role in disease may represent a fundamental step toward innovative treatments addressing the causes, not only the symptoms, of hyperglycemia, using approaches aimed at restoring either miRNAs or their specific targets. In this review, we outline the current understanding regarding the impact of miRNAs in the glucose metabolism and highlight the need for further research focused on altered key kinases and enzymes in metabolic diseases.
Highlights
ON miRNAsMicroRNAs are small (20–22 nucleotides), non-coding RNAs, characterized by an evolutionary conservation and able to regulate gene expression at the posttranscriptional level
In HepG2 and MHCC97L cancer cells, miR-30a overexpression completely blocks the activation of the Kirsten rat sarcoma viral oncogene homolog (KRAS)/extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathway by directly binding the 3′-untranslated region (UTR) of KRAS. These findings indicate that miR-30a may be involved in the cell growth, apoptosis, and metastasis of hepatocellular carcinoma cells [92]
MicroRNAs have emerged as important regulators of multiple aspects of the metabolic homeostasis and changes in their expression may prove to be crucial in determining the metabolic status, normal or pathological
Summary
Reviewed by: Sinan Tanyolac, Istanbul University, Turkey Rodolfo Iuliano, Magna Græcia University, Italy. Specialty section: This article was submitted to Genomic Endocrinology, a section of the journal
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