Zhang TM, Zhu XN, Qin SW, Guo XF, Xing XK, Zhao LF, Tan SK. Potential and application of abortive transcripts as a novel molecular marker of cancers. World J Exp Med 2024; 14(2): 92343 [PMID: 38948416 DOI: 10.5493/wjem.v14.i2.92343]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Sheng-Kui Tan, MD, Professor, Guangxi Key Laboratory of Environmental Exposomics and Entire Lifecycle Health, Guilin Medical University, No. 1 Zhiyuan Road, Guilin 541199, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China.sktan2008@sina.cn
Research Domain of This Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Article-Type of This Article
Minireviews
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Tian-Miao Zhang, Xiao-Nian Zhu, Xue-Feng Guo, Xue-Kun Xing, Sheng-Kui Tan, Guangxi Key Laboratory of Environmental Exposomics and Entire Lifecycle Health, Guilin Medical University, Guilin 541199, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China
Shao-Wei Qin, Li-Feng Zhao, School of Leisure and Health, Guilin Tourism University, Guilin 541006, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China
Author contributions: Zhang TM, and Zhu XN wrote the original draft; Qin SW, Xing XK, and Guo XF performed the collected data; Zhao LF, and Tan SK were responsible for the conceptualization, writing, review and editing; All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Supported byKey Science and Technology Research and Development Program Project of Guangxi, No. AB22035017.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Sheng-Kui Tan, MD, Professor, Guangxi Key Laboratory of Environmental Exposomics and Entire Lifecycle Health, Guilin Medical University, No. 1 Zhiyuan Road, Guilin 541199, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China.sktan2008@sina.cn
Received: January 23, 2024 Revised: April 25, 2024 Accepted: May 14, 2024 Published online: June 20, 2024 Processing time: 148 Days and 6.7 Hours
Abstract
Abortive transcript (AT) is a 2-19 nt long non-coding RNA that is produced in the abortive initiation stage. Abortive initiation was found to be closely related to RNA polymerase through in vitro experiments. Therefore, the distribution of AT length and the scale of abortive initiation are correlated to the promoter, discriminator, and transcription initiation sequence, and can be affected by transcription elongation factors. AT plays an important role in the occurrence and development of various diseases. Here we summarize the discovery of AT, the factors responsible for AT formation, the detection methods and biological functions of AT, to provide new clues for finding potential targets in the early diagnosis and treatment of cancers.
Core Tip: Abortive transcript (AT), as a special non-coding RNA, is the transcription product of abortive initiation. Abortive initiation occurs before normal transcription initiation and may be influenced by many factors. If its expression can be monitored normally, it will be of great significance for diagnosis and treatment of cancer. Though there are many difficulties and challenges in the study of AT in diseases, in-depth exploration of the role and mechanism of AT in cancers will provide a new potential target for early diagnosis and treatment of cancers and clinical prognosis.
