The role of human ribonuclease A family in health and diseases: A systematic review

Desen Sun; Chenjie Han; Jinghao Sheng

doi:10.1016/j.isci.2022.105284

The role of human ribonuclease A family in health and diseases: A systematic review

iScience. 2022 Oct 7;25(11):105284. doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2022.105284. eCollection 2022 Nov 18.

Authors

Desen Sun^{1

2}, Chenjie Han^{3

4}, Jinghao Sheng³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Gastroenterology, The Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang 315020, China.
² Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Pathophysiology, School of Medicine, Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang 315211, China.
³ Institute of Environmental Medicine and Affiliated Hangzhou First People's Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310058, China.
⁴ Undergraduate Program in Public Health, School of Public Health, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310058, China.

Abstract

The ribonuclease A (RNase A) family is one of the best-characterized vertebrate-specific proteins. In humans, eight catalytically active RNases (numbered 1-8) have been identified and have unique tissue distributions. Apart from the digestion of dietary RNA, a broad range of biological actions, including the regulation of intra- or extra-cellular RNA metabolism as well as antiviral, antibacterial, and antifungal activities, neurotoxicity, promotion of cell proliferation, anti-apoptosis, and immunomodulatory abilities, have been recently reported for the members of this family. Based on multiple biological roles, RNases are found to participate in the pathogenic processes of many diseases, such as infection, immune dysfunction, neurodegeneration, cancer, and cardiovascular disorders. This review summarizes the available data on the human RNase A family and illustrates the significant roles of the eight canonical RNases in health and disease, for stimulating further basic research and development of ideas on the potential solutions for disease diagnosis and treatment.

Keywords: cell biology; disease; functional aspects of cell biology.

Publication types

Review