British researchers have identified a piece of non-coding Ribonucleic acid (RNA) that stops cells turning cancerous, reveals a study.The human genome contains around three metres of DNA, of which only about 2 percent contains genes that code for proteins and the rest has been recorded as RNA -- transcribed from a stretch of DNA that doesn't code for a protein.
"In our study we've identified that a strand of non-coding RNA prevents the growth of a switch getting stuck and suppresses the spread of cancer,” said Adele Murrell from the University of Bath in UK.
The findings could be used to understand how other non-coding RNAs function and to develop potential gene therapies to treat cancer, the researchers said.The non-coding RNA fragment maintains healthy cells through two mechanisms: Firstly, by regulating the levels of one of its neighbouring genes that is involved in cell replication; secondly by suppressing a network of genes that prepares cells to change their shape and prepare for spread, explained the researchers in the paper published in the journal -- Nature Communications.The scientists were able to distinguish between these two mechanisms by using smaller interfering RNAs (siRNAs) to either specifically stop the non-coding RNA from being made or to degrade the RNA immediately after it was made.Both approaches led to cells changing their shape and transforming into migratory cells, the study revealed.