[The Research Advance of the piRNA Function]

Piwi-interacting RNA (piRNA)is the largest class of small non-coding RNA,which usually expressed in germline cells.piRNA has a role in transposon silencing,and contributes to maintain ge-nome integrity.The C.elegans piRNA has a special role in a memory of previous gene expression.The discovery of piRNA in somatic cells and cancers showed the functional diversity of piRNA.In this article, we reviewed the piRNA's role in transposon,mRNA,lncRNA,DNA methylation and epigenetic regula-tion,and discussed the function of piRNA in cancers.