miR-1908: a microRNA with diverse functions in cancers and non-malignant conditions

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small-sized transcripts with about 22 nucleotide length. They have been shown to influence almost every aspect of cellular functions through regulation of expression of target genes. miR-1908 is a miRNA with diverse roles in human disorders. This miRNA is encoded by MIR1908 gene on chr11:61,815,161–61,815,240, minus strand. Expression assays have confirmed dysregulation of miR-1908 in cancer-derived cell lines in addition to biological samples obtained from patients affected with cancer. In most assessed cell lines, miR-1908 has an oncogenic role. However, this miRNA has been shown to act as a tumor suppressor in chordoma, lung cancer and ovarian cancer. In addition, several lines of evidence have shown involvement of this miRNA in the pathoetiology of bipolar disorder, myocardial infarction, obesity, renal fibrosis, rheumatoid arthritis and scar formation. In the current review, we elucidate the results of diverse studies which evaluated participation of miR-1908 in these conditions.