miR signatures and the role of miRs in acute myeloid leukaemia

Acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) is a hematopoietic stem cell disorder in which neoplastic myeloblasts are arrested in an immature stage of differentiation. Recent publications have underlined the involvement of non-coding RNAs in cancer and particularly in AML development, with several studies regarding their possible contribution to the evolution of the disease. MicroRNAs (miRs) are a class of single-stranded non-coding RNAs that bind to the 3′-untranslated region of target mRNAs and thus negatively regulate gene expression, by translation repression or mRNA degradation. Abnormal expression of miRs in AML has been described and we here review the current data from miR expression profiles. Additionally, we review the current knowledge on the biological function of individual miRs in the development of AML.