[Circulating microRNAs in vascular biology and endothelial dysfunction-related diseases]

Circulating microRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of evolutionary conserved non-coding RNAs of 19-22 nucleotides in circulating blood, that function as negative regulators of gene expression through specific combination with target mRNAs. Vascular endothelial cells can produce circulating miRNAs to regulate the function of themselves and other cells, as well as be regulated by circulating miRNAs from other sources. Changes of circulating miRNAs expression are disease-specific, therefore, they are expected to be the promising biomarkers for early warning, diagnosing and evaluating prognosis of the endothelial dysfunction-related disease. In this review, we will discuss the biological characteristics of circulating miRNAs and its role in vascular biology and endothelial dysfunction-related diseases.