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Updated: Dec 31, 2025

In Silico Identification and Characterization of circRNAs During Host-Pathogen Interactions
Published on: October 21, 2022
miRNAs at the heart of host-pathogen interactions
Maud Contrant1, Aurélie Fender1, Sébastien Pfeffer1
1Université de Strasbourg, Institut de biologie moléculaire et cellulaire du CNRS, Architecture et réactivité de l'ARN, 15, rue René-Descartes, 67084 Strasbourg cedex, France.
Abstract:
MicroRNAs are small regulators found in almost all eukaryotes. They are involved in key cellular process such as tissue differentiation or cell cycle regulation. Interestingly, some viruses encode their own set of miRNA genes. Viral miRNAs can act in cis by targeting the viral genome or in trans by affecting the expression of host mRNAs. Thus, be they viral or cellular, miRNAs are at the heart of host-pathogen interactions. In this review, we first present the viruses that encode miRNAs and how these are expressed in the host cells. Second, we describe the biological roles of viral and cellular miRNAs during infection by several representative examples. This domain of investigation has seen tremendous interest in the past few years, and might lead to the development of new therapeutics in a near future.
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