Regulatory and Functional Involvement of Long Non-Coding RNAs in DNA Double-Strand Break Repair Mechanisms
Angelos Papaspyropoulos,
Nefeli Lagopati,
Ioanna Mourkioti,
Andriani Angelopoulou,
Spyridon Kyriazis,
Michalis Liontos,
Vassilis Gorgoulis,
Athanassios Kotsinas
Affiliations
Angelos Papaspyropoulos
Molecular Carcinogenesis Group, Department of Histology and Embryology, Medical School, National Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), 75 Mikras Asias Str., Goudi, GR-11527 Athens, Greece
Nefeli Lagopati
Molecular Carcinogenesis Group, Department of Histology and Embryology, Medical School, National Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), 75 Mikras Asias Str., Goudi, GR-11527 Athens, Greece
Ioanna Mourkioti
Molecular Carcinogenesis Group, Department of Histology and Embryology, Medical School, National Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), 75 Mikras Asias Str., Goudi, GR-11527 Athens, Greece
Andriani Angelopoulou
Molecular Carcinogenesis Group, Department of Histology and Embryology, Medical School, National Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), 75 Mikras Asias Str., Goudi, GR-11527 Athens, Greece
Spyridon Kyriazis
Molecular Carcinogenesis Group, Department of Histology and Embryology, Medical School, National Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), 75 Mikras Asias Str., Goudi, GR-11527 Athens, Greece
Michalis Liontos
Molecular Carcinogenesis Group, Department of Histology and Embryology, Medical School, National Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), 75 Mikras Asias Str., Goudi, GR-11527 Athens, Greece
Vassilis Gorgoulis
Molecular Carcinogenesis Group, Department of Histology and Embryology, Medical School, National Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), 75 Mikras Asias Str., Goudi, GR-11527 Athens, Greece
Athanassios Kotsinas
Molecular Carcinogenesis Group, Department of Histology and Embryology, Medical School, National Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), 75 Mikras Asias Str., Goudi, GR-11527 Athens, Greece
Protection of genome integrity is vital for all living organisms, particularly when DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) occur. Eukaryotes have developed two main pathways, namely Non-Homologous End Joining (NHEJ) and Homologous Recombination (HR), to repair DSBs. While most of the current research is focused on the role of key protein players in the functional regulation of DSB repair pathways, accumulating evidence has uncovered a novel class of regulating factors termed non-coding RNAs. Non-coding RNAs have been found to hold a pivotal role in the activation of DSB repair mechanisms, thereby safeguarding genomic stability. In particular, long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have begun to emerge as new players with vast therapeutic potential. This review summarizes important advances in the field of lncRNAs, including characterization of recently identified lncRNAs, and their implication in DSB repair pathways in the context of tumorigenesis.