title: MicroRNAs and their variants in an RNA world: implications for complex interactions and diverse roles in an RNA regulatory network.
abstract: Multiple microRNA (miRNA) variant (isomiR) sequences have been identified at miRNA loci, suggesting that the miRNA sequence is not a single sequence but a series of isomiR sequences with sequence and expression heterogeneities. These isomiRs may be considered a large gene family with diverse expression patterns or a mini-gene cluster with high levels of sequence similarity. Although the isomiRs are diverse and have potentially coordinated relationships in regulatory networks via isomiR-isomiR interactions, they are largely unstudied. External interactions with other RNAs also enrich the cross-talk across different RNA molecules. In the present study, we describe miRNAs/isomiRs and their interactions, and methods and platforms. Interactions with small RNAs may be an internal regulatory pattern and an effective means of achieving synergistic regulation, which provides a new angle to explore the small RNA world.
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioinformatics, School of Geographic and Biologic Information, Nanjing University of Posts and Telecommunications, Nanjing, China.
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Molecular and Medical Biotechnology, College of Life Science, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, China.
authors.forename: Tingming
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Liang
mesh_terms: D019295:Computational Biology; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D053263:Gene Regulatory Networks; D014644:Genetic Variation; D006801:Humans; D035683:MicroRNAs / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D059467:Transcriptome
chemical_list: D035683:MicroRNAs