Scientists Found tRNAs may Promote Cancer Cell Growth

Scientists from US have identified that hormone-related breast cancer and prostate cancer could specifically produce one kind of small RNAs which are originated from tRNAs. They play a very important role in promoting cell growth. This study was published in PNAS.

Scientists Found tRNAs may Promote Cancer Cell Growth

Transfer RNAs (tRNAs) are universally expressed in all three domains of life, and play a central role in protein synthesis as an adapter molecule translating codon triplet sequences into amino acids. Mature tRNAs are 70- to 90- nucleotides (nt) non-coding RNA molecules forming a cloverleaf secondary structure that further folds into a L-shaped tertiary structure. The human nuclear genome encodes over 500 tRNA genes over 500 tRNA genes, along with numerous genes of tRNA-lookalikes resembling nuclear and mitochondrial tRNAs.

Although transfer RNAs(tRNAs) are best known as adapter molecules essential for translation, recent biomedical and computational evidence has led to a previously unexpected conceptual consensus that tRNAs are not always end products but can further serve as a source of small functional RNAs, termed SHOT-RNAs, are specifically and abundantly expressed in sex hormone-dependent breast and prostate cancers. SHOT-RNAs are produced from aminoacylated mature tRNAs by angiogenin-mediated cleavage of the anticodon loop, which is promoted by sex hormones and their receptors.

In this study, researchers identified the complete repertoire of SHOT-RNAs, and also found their functional significance in cell proliferation. These results have unveiled a novel tRNA-engaged pathway in tumorigenesis.

 

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