Regulatory, diagnostic, and therapeutic roles of microRNAs in chronic liver diseases.

Fibrogenesis is initially performed during tissue damage to protect the remaining tissues from the progressive death of epithelial cells, infiltration of immune and inflammatory cells, and local degrading enzymes. Inflammation can lead to excessive extracellular matrix deposition by fibroblasts and the induction of fibrosis in many organs, such as the liver. MiRNAs are small noncoding RNAs that mediate mRNA repression or destabilization, leading to translational repression. Owing to the wide range of roles of miRNAs in the development of fibrosis, especially liver fibrosis, many studies have focused on their diagnostic, regulatory, and therapeutic roles. In this study, we used medical science and general databases, including PubMed, Elsevier, Scopus, Nature, and Google Scholar, to find valid studies on the different roles of miRNAs in liver fibrosis. Because a large number of miRNAs with regulatory, diagnostic, and therapeutic roles in diseases associated with liver fibrosis have been identified and reported in this study, special attention to these elements is needed in the future of healthcare systems.