MicroRNA rules: Made to be broken

P. Shannon PENDERGRAST, Tom VOLPE

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Front. Biol. ›› 2013, Vol. 8 ›› Issue (5) : 468-474. DOI: 10.1007/s11515-013-1273-z
MINI-REVIEW

MicroRNA rules: Made to be broken

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Abstract

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are important post-transcriptional regulators of gene expression. For over a decade the deluge of research describing the biogenesis and activity of miRNAs has lead researchers to postulate rules to help make sense of the enormous amount of data produced. These rules are repeated in miRNA research papers and reviews. While these rules have been helpful one must be conscious of their limitations or risk missing future breakthroughs. Here we describe some of the most commonly stated rules, the reasoning behind their formation, their uses, and limitations.

Keywords

microRNA / post-transcriptional / gene regulation / mRNA / 3' UTR / conservation rule / seed pairing rule / biogenesis rule / mechanism of action rule

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P. Shannon PENDERGRAST, Tom VOLPE. MicroRNA rules: Made to be broken. Front Biol, 2013, 8(5): 468‒474 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11515-013-1273-z

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Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank Anna Markowska and Michele McDonough for helpful comments on the manuscript. We thank Scott Pendergrast and Stephen Pendergrast for support and helpful discussions.
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2014 Higher Education Press and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
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