title: Circulating microRNAs as Hormones: Intercellular and Inter-organ Conveyors of Epigenetic Information?
abstract: The discovery of microRNAs (miRNAs) has created a paradigm shift not only in the traditional central dogma of molecular biology but also in the research of a variety of human diseases. Fourteen years after the discovery of miRNAs, there was another revolutionary finding: cells can shuttle miRNAs between each other via small lipid bilayer vesicles called exosomes. This exosome-mediated horizontal transfer of genetically encoded messages is now recognized as a means of intercellular communication. This chapter reviews the concept that miRNAs can function as hormones conveying epigenetic information.
authors.affiliation: Division of Molecular and Cellular Medicine, National Cancer Center Research Institute, 5-1-1, Tsukiji, Chuo-ku, Tokyo, 104-0045, Japan.
authors.forename: Yusuke
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yoshioka
authors.affiliation: Division of Molecular and Cellular Medicine, National Cancer Center Research Institute, 5-1-1, Tsukiji, Chuo-ku, Tokyo, 104-0045, Japan.
authors.forename: Takeshi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Katsuda
authors.affiliation: Division of Molecular and Cellular Medicine, National Cancer Center Research Institute, 5-1-1, Tsukiji, Chuo-ku, Tokyo, 104-0045, Japan. tochiya@ncc.go.jp.
authors.forename: Takahiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ochiya
keywords: Cell-to-cell communication; Circulating miRNAs; Exosome; Extracellular vesicles; miRNA