Cancer-related molecular mechanisms research

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are RNA molecules longer than 200 nucleotides that do not encode proteins yet play surprisingly active roles in regulating gene expression, shaping the transcriptional landscape, and remodeling chromatin structure. In cancer, many lncRNAs are aberrantly expressed, where they can disrupt normal cell differentiation, interfere with competing endogenous RNA networks, or alter epigenetic states in ways that drive tumor growth or suppress it. Researchers are working to understand how specific lncRNAs interact with chromatin-modifying complexes and transcription factors to produce these effects, and how the same molecule can behave differently depending on cell type or disease context. A central challenge is moving from cataloguing thousands of dysregulated lncRNAs to assigning precise molecular functions to each, which is necessary before they can be reliably used as diagnostic markers or therapeutic targets.

Works

125,623

Total citations

2,214,550

Keywords

Long Noncoding RNAsCancerRNA RegulationEpigenetic RegulationTranscriptional LandscapeCell Differentiation