Noncoding RNAs and pancreatic cancer

Noncoding RNAs(nc RNAs) represent a class of RNA molecules that typically do not code for proteins. Emerging data suggest that nc RNAs play an important role in several physiological and pathological conditions such as cancer. The best-characterized nc RNAs are the micro RNAs(mi RNAs), which are short, approximately 22-nucleotide sequences of RNA of approximately 22-nucleotide in length that regulate gene expression at the posttranscriptional level, through transcript degradation or translational repression. Mi RNAs can function as master gene regulators, impacting a variety of cellular pathways important to normal cellular functions as well as cancer development and progression. In addition to mi RNAs, long nc RNAs, which are transcripts longer than 200 nucleotides, have recently emerged as novel drivers of tumorigenesis. However, the molecular mechanisms of their regulation and function, and the significance of other nc RNAs such as piwi-interacting RNAs in pancreas carcinogenesis are largely unknown. This review summarizes the growing body of evidence supporting the vital roles of nc RNAs in pancreatic cancer, focusing on their dysregulation through both genetic and epigenetic mechanisms, and highlighting the promise of nc RNAs in diagnostic and therapeutic applications of pancreatic cancer.