Emerging functions of circular RNA in the regulation of adipocyte metabolism and obesity

Yuanyuan Zhang; Zhichen Tian; Haibo Ye; Xiaomei Sun; Huiming Zhang; Yujia Sun; Yongjiang Mao; Zhangping Yang; Mingxun Li

doi:10.1038/s41420-022-01062-w

Emerging functions of circular RNA in the regulation of adipocyte metabolism and obesity

Cell Death Discov. 2022 May 20;8(1):268. doi: 10.1038/s41420-022-01062-w.

Authors

Yuanyuan Zhang^{1

2}, Zhichen Tian^{1

2}, Haibo Ye^{1

2}, Xiaomei Sun^{1

2}, Huiming Zhang^{1

2}, Yujia Sun^{1

2}, Yongjiang Mao^{1

2}, Zhangping Yang^{3

4}, Mingxun Li^{5

6}

Affiliations

¹ Joint International Research Laboratory of Agriculture and Agri-Product Safety, the Ministry of Education of China, Yangzhou University, 225009, Yangzhou, Jiangsu, China.
² Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics & Breeding and Molecular Design of Jiangsu province, College of Animal Science and Technology, Yangzhou University, 225009, Yangzhou, Jiangsu, China.
³ Joint International Research Laboratory of Agriculture and Agri-Product Safety, the Ministry of Education of China, Yangzhou University, 225009, Yangzhou, Jiangsu, China. yzp@yzu.edu.cn.
⁴ Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics & Breeding and Molecular Design of Jiangsu province, College of Animal Science and Technology, Yangzhou University, 225009, Yangzhou, Jiangsu, China. yzp@yzu.edu.cn.
⁵ Joint International Research Laboratory of Agriculture and Agri-Product Safety, the Ministry of Education of China, Yangzhou University, 225009, Yangzhou, Jiangsu, China. limingxun@live.com.
⁶ Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics & Breeding and Molecular Design of Jiangsu province, College of Animal Science and Technology, Yangzhou University, 225009, Yangzhou, Jiangsu, China. limingxun@live.com.

Abstract

As noncoding RNAs, circular RNAs (circRNAs) are covalently enclosed endogenous biomolecules in eukaryotes that have tissue specificity and cell specificity. circRNAs were once considered a rare splicing byproduct. With the development of high-throughput sequencing, it has been confirmed that they are expressed in thousands of mammalian genes. To date, only a few circRNA functions and regulatory mechanisms have been verified. Adipose is the main tissue for body energy storage and energy supply. Adipocyte metabolism is a physiological process involving a series of genes and affects biological activities in the body, such as energy metabolism, immunity, and signal transmission. When adipocyte formation is dysregulated, it will cause a series of diseases, such as atherosclerosis, obesity, fatty liver, and diabetes. In recent years, many noncoding RNAs involved in adipocyte metabolism have been revealed. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the basic structure and biosynthetic mechanism of circRNAs, and further discusses the circRNAs related to adipocyte formation in adipose tissue and liver. Our review will provide a reference for further elucidating the genetic regulation mechanism of circRNAs involved in adipocyte metabolism.

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Review

Abstract

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