The Role of microRNAs Involved in Mesenchymal Stem Cell Differentiation

Paik, Seungil; Jung, Ho Sun; Lee, Jin Woo

Abstract

Over the past decade, microRNA has been emerging as a key regulator involved in various biological and physiological process including cell cycle, tissue development and pathogenesis. The effort to decipher the complicated machinery behind microRNA function is underway yet the complete understanding is far from being reached. However, various groups have made successful identification of the role of a specific microRNA involved in a specific process. This article summarizes the microRNAs identified in one such specific area, namely, differentiation of mesenchymal stem cell. Characterized by its unique potential to differentiate into three separate tissue cell types, adipocyte, chondrocyte and osteoblast, mesenchymal stem cells have been of immense interest for its possible applicability in regenerative medicine. Despite this interest, however, the study of microRNA function in MSCs differentiation remains rudimentary. The aim of this paper is to summarize the currently identified, experimentally validated and accepted by the scientific community as novel, microRNAs involved in MSC differentiation.