Circular RNAs function as ceRNAs to regulate and control human cancer progression

Abstract

Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are connected at the 3' and 5' ends by exon or intron cyclization, forming a complete ring structure. circRNA is more stable and conservative than linear RNA and abounds in various organisms. In recent years, increasing numbers of reports have found that circRNA plays a major role in the biological functions of a network of competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA). circRNAs can compete together with microRNAs (miRNAs) to influence the stability of target RNAs or their translation, thus, regulating gene expression at the transcriptional level. circRNAs are involved in biological processes such as tumor cell proliferation, apoptosis, invasion, and migration as ceRNAs. circRNAs, therefore, represent promising candidates for clinical diagnosis and treatment. Here, we review the progress in studying the role of circRNAs as ceRNAs in tumors and highlight the participation of circRNAs in signal transduction pathways to regulate cellular functions.