Correlation Between Circular RNAs and Pathogenesis of Steroid-induced Necrosis of the Femoral Head
1. Clinical College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu, China;
2. Orthopedics Department, Gansu Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou 730050, Gansu, China
Abstract：Steroid-induced necrosis of the femoral head (SANFH) is a common disease of the hip joints, and its early diagnosis and treatment are difficult. Finding molecular biomarkers of SANFH is of great signifi-cance for its early diagnosis. Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a kind of closed circular non-coding RNAs (nc-RNAs), which are involved in the occurrence and development of many diseases by adsorbing microRNAs (miRNAs) like sponges, binding RNA-binding proteins (RBPs), directly translating proteins, regulating gene expression and so on. They are important regulatory factors in the body. In recent years, many studies have explored the pathogenesis of SANFH based on circRNAs. This article reviews the biological characteristics, functions, and regulatory roles of circRNAs in vascular microcirculation, lipid metabolism, and bone meta-bolism related to pathogenesis of SANFH, and discusses the potential roles of circRNAs as biomarkers for diagnosing early-stage SANFH.
