中文摘要：

竞争性内源RNA（competing endogenousRNA，ceRNA）假说提出了一种RNA在转录后水平调控基因表达的机制，即信使RNA（messageRNA，mRNA）、长链非编码RNA（longnon．codingRNA，lncRNA）、假基因（pseudogene）转录物及环状RNA（circularRNA，circRNA）通过竞争结合相同的微小RNA（microRNA，miRNA）来影响靶基因RNA的稳定性或翻译活性．实现转录后水平的基因表达调节。这一全新的基因表达调控机制目前已在肌肉的分化、胚胎干细胞的分化、中脑的发育及癌症的转移等多个研究领域被发现，并且被证实参与多个生物学过程的调控。ceRNA这种以miRNA为媒介实现RNA与RNA相互调控的机制，使得编码基因和非编码基因在全转录组范围内形成了一个庞大而精细的调控网络，增加了基因调控网络的复杂性。文章就ceRNA的分子类型、ceRNA机制所涉及的生物学功能、影响ceRNA机制的重要因素及ceRNA调控网络预测这几个方面进行综述。

英文摘要：

Competing endogenous RNA （ceRNA） has been revealed recently as a novel post-transcriptional regulation mechanism. Multiple transcripts, including mRNA, long noncoding RNAs, pseudogenes and circular RNAs, compete for sponging the same microRNAs to affect the stabilization or translation of mRNAs, and modulate the expression of target genes post-transcriptionally. This new mechanism involving in diverse biological processes has been verified in several fields, including muscle and embryonic stem cells differentiation, midbrain development and cancer metastasis. Through the medium of miRNAs, ceRNAs make inter-regulations between RNAs, and form a large-scale and delicate regulatory network in the transcriptome, deepening the complexity of gene regulatory networks. This paper reviews diverse kinds of RNAs which act as ceRNAs, biological functions which ceRNAs are involved in, factors influencing the efficacy of ceRNAs, and predicting of ceRNA networks.